Harry Potter and the Tears of an Angel
by Colin The Master of Whisperers
Summary: Voldemort had another Horcrux. Nineteen years later he returned. In 2047, Harry Potter and Luna Lovegood, the two remaining human beings on Earth send sixty minutes of memories each to their younger selves. Not really time travel but definitely AU. ***This is a re-upload. I decided that I wanted all of my stories in one place.***
1. Prologue

**_Disclaimer:_** _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes. I also make no claim to the rights of "My Sweet Prince" by Placebo._

* * *

 _—PROLOGUE—_

 _Sacrifice_

The old-school Muggle CD player filled the room with music long-forgotten by all but the two who sat opposite each other, apprehension written on their ageing faces. They knew that it had to be done. They had spent too long on it to back out now. Would it work? Could they save anyone? Would they finally, after so very long, fix everything?

 _Never thought you'd make me perspire.  
Never thought I'd do you the same.  
Never thought I'd fill with desire.  
Never thought I'd feel so ashamed._

Harry Potter and Luna Lovegood, the last true remnants of humanity, sat on either side of a pewter cauldron that had two wands sat either side of it and one lying across the rim.

Holly. Phoenix Feather. Eleven inches.

Ebony. Phoenix Feather. Nine inches.

Elder. Thestral Tail Hair. Fifteen inches.

They continued to look at each other and knew with absolute clarity what the other was thinking. _This is it. We've waited fifty-two years to fix things. This is it._

Harry Potter was the first to move, running his hand through his now very grey-streaked hair. There was very little trace of the black he had inherited from his father any longer. His glasses were no longer round but rectangular and were a dark brown colour. His famous scar was on display due to his very slowly receding hairline. His eyes were as vividly green as ever.

Luna Lovegood shook a lock of her still blonde hair out of her left eye. Her face was marred by age but her eyes looked the same as they had all those years ago. She reached to her neck where she fondled her Butterbeer-Cork Necklace, the last remnant of her past life.

 _Me and the dragon can chase all the pain away.  
So before I end my day, remember...  
My sweet prince, you are the one...  
My sweet prince,  
you are the one._

Being so close to achieving what they had held onto life for made both of them reminisce about times past. Without knowing, both of their minds went to the same thing.

* * *

 _For nineteen years, all had seemed well. Harry Potter had defeated the Dark Lord, Tom Riddle. You-Know-Who. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Voldemort. The Wizarding World was in a state of constant rejoicing. During this immensely happy period of time, Harry Potter married Ginevra Weasley and, together, they had three beautiful children. James Sirius Potter was the first, followed by Albus Severus Potter and then Lily Luna Potter. Harry and Ginny could not have been happier._

 _Luna Lovegood became a famous Wizarding Naturalist and frequently left the country in search of many magical and mystical beasts, some of which she found and some of which she did not have the good fortune of finding. It was on one of these expeditions that she met Rolf Scamander and fell in love. By the time James Sirius Potter was on the train for his first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Luna and Rolf had twin sons Lorcan and Lysander. Luna and Rolf could not have been happier._

 _Then came September 1st, 2017. Albus Potter was due to leave on the Hogwarts Express for the first time, finally headed to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry and Ginny accompanied him to King's Cross Station along with their young daughter, Lily. It was there that they met up with Ronald and Hermione Weasley with their son Hugo who were there to see off the eldest daughter of the two, Rose._

 _It seemed to be a beautiful picture of love and innocence. It wasn't until the end of the day when word came from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry that the Hogwarts Express had been attacked, derailed and had the Dark Mark floating above it. Not a child was left alive. Not one._

* * *

The memory feeling so fresh and real in their minds, Harry and Luna each let the tears flow, but did not reach out to comfort each other. They both knew that they had to persevere and press onwards. Yet it was difficult and wrought with pain and sorrow.

 _Never thought I'd have to retire.  
Never thought I'd have to abstain.  
Never thought all this could backfire.  
Close up the hole in my vein._

Hours later, when the two had stopped weeping, they looked at each other once again. Both faces were now tear-stained as well as age-worn. They each knew that they were looking into the eyes of the only other human being left on the planet. Tom Marvolo Riddle did not count. That was not a human being.

* * *

 _The Wizarding World was in a state of mourning and panic. Near enough to a whole generation had been wiped out in one fell swoop. Nobody knew who was responsible for the feat. Many pointed the finger at Lucius Malfoy and his son Draco, being the only true Death Eaters remaining who were not dead or imprisoned for life. Lucius was thrown through the Veil of Death at the Ministry of Magic without so much as a trial, but Draco was spared through the help of Harry Potter._

 _Despite his grief and anger, Harry knew that Draco would not have sent his son, Scorpius, on the Hogwarts Express to die and should not be held responsible. The Minister for Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt, agreed with Harry and announced that Draco was to be exonerated. The Weasley and Potter families were broken. They had lost many children and grandchildren. The only Weasley who did not lose a son, a daughter or a grandchild was Charlie who was unattached at the time, and had no one to lose. It seemed that poor Charlie was destined to be the rock of the family._

 _Harry and Ginny continued onwards, albeit with very broken spirits, and took care of Lily as well as they could. Luna and Rolf both retired from field work, knowing that their friends needed their help. The two helped the Weasleys and Potters through the time between the attack on the Hogwarts Express and the attack on St. Mungo's on New Years Eve later that same year._

 _The whole building was destroyed and all of the patients killed. Not only that, Neville Longbottom, his wife Hannah and Augusta Longbottom, his ageing grandmother, who were visiting Neville's parents, were also killed in the destruction. Hannah had just found out that she was pregnant and they were there telling Neville's parents._

 _Even that was not the most shocking, or even sickening, revelation to be had. When the ruins of St. Mungo's was found, the Aurors who were sent, including Harry Potter, saw a figure floating above the ruins. A figure that had chilled them to their very bones. A figure that was laughing a very high-pitched laugh. Tom Marvolo Riddle had found a way to survive all those years ago. No one was able to do anything as he disappeared._

 _After that incident, Harry, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, Luna and Rolf all gathered around the portrait of Albus Dumbledore to find out the possible cause of Voldemort's continued life. Albus Dumbledore looked to be at a loss for words._

" _Ah …" the old headmaster pondered as he sat his elbows upon his painted desk and stroked his beard. "It appears that Tom was much more cunning then we were prepared to believe. If I were to guess, I would say that he had one last Horcrux."_

 _Those words had sent chills down the spines of all present as they realised what it meant. The Final Wizarding War had begun._

* * *

Harry and Luna both reached out for their wands at precisely the same time. They looked deep into each other's eyes as they both took hold of their wands. In sync, they raised the wands and chanted in a mixture of Greek, Latin, French and English, the words that were needed. The music continued to play.

 _Me and my valuable friend,  
Can fix all the pain away.  
So before I end my day,  
Remember...  
My sweet prince,  
You are the one.  
My sweet prince,  
You are the one.  
You are the one.  
You are the one.  
You are the one.  
You are the one._

The two continued to chant as their wands created a strange link. It was like a multi-coloured thread, combining in the shape of a rainbow star. It made its way above the cauldron and settled, changing colour constantly, as Harry and Luna continued to both chant and reminisce.

* * *

 _There were fourteen. The Great Hall of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry held the last fourteen magical residents of Europe, not including the Dark Lord himself. Harry Potter. Ginny Potter. Luna Scamander. Teddy Lupin. Fleur Weasley. Poppy Pomfrey. Minerva McGonagall. Charlie Weasley. Susan Bones. Kingsley Shacklebolt. Dennis Creevey. Ernie Macmillan. Viktor Krum. Draco Malfoy._

 _They all knew that they were fighting a losing battle. It was all but over. The Muggles were nearly wiped out. The European Magical community was dead except for them. Voldemort had found that working alone worked best for him and it was the end of the world when he had._

 _They were preparing to fight. That was all that could be done. After Voldemort's attack on St. Mungo's, Hogwarts was warded even heavier than it had been after the Final Battle. It was made so difficult for Voldemort to get to them that they had been able to live there for the last six years with no sight of him. It was, at that point, sixteen years after the attack on the Hogwarts Express._

 _They knew that Voldemort would attack eventually. That much was absolutely certain. There was an eerie feel about that day as they all sat in the Great Hall at the one table. No one spoke of it, but all of them knew it was there. They all knew that it was that day that would be the Wizarding World's last stand. The only fourteen remaining against Voldemort, who still had a Horcrux. They all knew they were fighting a losing battle. Even with Harry once again in possession of the Elder Wand, it would not be enough._

 _Voldemort had, indeed, found a way through the wards. He had spent the better part of the past six years researching the Curse-Breaking profession and even created a few spells of his own to get through them. And when he did, all hell broke loose._

 _The first to be killed was Viktor, the victim of a severing charm to the throat, as he tried to head Voldemort off before entering the castle. Luna, Poppy and Ernie all saw him die. They had all seen so much death and destruction that it had barely any effect on them whatsoever and they immediately went on the offensive. Voldemort disposed of Ernie rather quickly with a well-aimed Killing Curse at Poppy which Ernie jumped in front of to take the hit. He died in vain, however, as Voldemort immediately sent a second sickly green spell towards the Healer. As the wards were down completely, Luna Apparated away to the Great Hall where the rest were waiting. There was no mourning as they all awaited Voldemort's inevitable appearance._

 _He appeared suddenly with a loud bang as he blew away the door of the Great Hall with such velocity that it hit Teddy and Susan, killing them both instantly. Harry could not control his emotions as he saw his godson and one of his closest friends killed and sent a Killing Curse at Voldemort which the Dark Lord deftly avoided and then taunted Harry before striking down Fleur, who had been firing off spells at him at an intense speed, with a Killing Curse._

 _That was the last straw for Ginny as she fired three consecutive stunners at the Dark Lord followed by her very own Killing Curse. Voldemort laughed as he dodged them all with the speed of a man far younger than he was, and hit her with his own Killing Curse, all the while dodging and deflecting spells from the rest of the magical population. Harry had tears in his eyes as he lunged forward before being physically restrained by Kingsley. The Ex-Minister For Magic forcefully pushed Harry behind him as he, Minerva and Charlie all stepped forward, looking to attempt to out-duel Voldemort._

" _The Room of Requirement!" Minerva yelled just before being hit with a Killing Curse and slumping to the ground. Harry, Luna, Dennis and Draco all nodded and Apparated away to the seventh floor corridor, just before seeing Kingsley fall._

 _When they got there, Harry immediately began pacing, thinking intensely of a completely indestructible room that Voldemort could not enter. The Room of Requirement provided exactly what he had wanted. A door appeared and Luna swiftly opened it, letting Draco and Dennis in before herself and Harry. As she slammed the door shut, she heard the sound of apparition and knew that they had just narrowly avoided the clutches of Voldemort._

* * *

Even as the chanting continued, the tears flowed. Harry and Luna had so many bad memories and they couldn't seem to get rid of any of them, even for a second. It was painful and they often felt it would be easier to die. But then, that would let Voldemort win. And they simply could not allow that.

 _Never thought I'd get any higher.  
Never thought you'd fuck with my brain.  
Never thought all this could expire.  
Never thought you'd go break the chain._

They finally finished chanting and the rainbow star flashed bright before descending into the cauldron, slipping through the Elder Wand which glowed with a bright yellow light, so bright that Harry and Luna had to avert their eyes so as to protect their own vision.

They still had one thing to do before it was completed and they both pointed their wands at the cauldron and the sickly green liquid inside. Before they spoke their eyes met and they both felt a strong surge of love.

" _Avada Kedavra_ ," they both whispered and two identical green flashes hit the liquid in the cauldron, causing the potion to bubble fiercely and loudly.

* * *

 _The Room of Requirement provided what was needed for the four surviving human beings for fourteen years and provided an even greater resource in the very first day. Harry Potter, still deeply in mourning, sat with Luna Lovegood, Dennis Creevey and Draco Malfoy surrounding him as he cried to the heavens above: "I want to change it all!"_

 _And the room, as it always had, and always would, provided._

 _The room swiftly put in front of them two objects. A pewter cauldron and a large, leather-bound book that seemed very old but looked as if it had not aged a day. There was a red strip of fabric in the book, left at a certain page. Dennis opened the book carefully to the marked page and gasped at what he saw._

" _A Time Travel Potion!" he whispered in a voice that made it seem as if he had yelled it from the top of the Astronomy Tower. Draco plucked the book from the other man's hands and studied it carefully._

" _It's extremely Dark," he said as he handed Luna the book. "It requires human blood and a human sacrifice. And it can only take two backwards."_

" _It doesn't really send a person back," Luna corrected quietly. "It sends selected memories back to a date of your choosing. To the younger bodies of yourselves."_

 _As she spoke, Harry read the book carefully._

 _"I don't care that it's Dark," Harry declared fervently. "All that matters is that this gives us a chance. A chance we wouldn't otherwise have. I'm sure we can do this, though it will take fourteen years to brew. The room should be able to supply us with the ingredients."_

 _It was then that the four chose to do what needed to be done. The human sacrifice was not required until sometime in the seventh year and when it came around, Dennis bravely stepped up, ready to lay down his life for the world and his friends. Before Harry could cast the Killing Curse at him, Dennis took him aside and asked him one favour._

" _I only ask of you one thing, Harry," Dennis said quietly. "Please. Please befriend Colin when you get back. Let him live knowing he had a friend at Hogwarts. Please," Dennis begged as two lone tears ran down his face. Harry pulled his dear friend into a hug from which neither man wanted to be extricated._

" _I'll do it. Don't you worry, Dennis," Harry said to his friend as they held each other. "You're laying down your life to save the world. That's something most could not do. I will honour your request."_

 _With those final words, the two broke their embrace, Harry kissing his cheek lightly before standing with Dennis as the doomed man hugged Draco and kissed Luna on the cheek before standing in front of Harry, a determined look on his face._

 _"Remember, Harry," Dennis pleaded. "Remember Colin."_

 _Harry nodded and, with tears flowing down his face, he pointed his wand at Dennis. "_ _Avada Kedavra_ _," he said in a forceful whisper. The sickly green light hit its target and Dennis Creevey fell to the ground, his eyes still open and a look of determination on his face. Luna burst into tears and was comforted by Draco as Harry enlarged the pewter cauldron to fit Dennis' still relatively small body._

 _Another seven years later, the potion was mere days from done when Draco came to Harry and Luna with an idea._

" _I think I should leave the room and tell Tom that you two are coming out of here in four days," Draco said. "You know as well as I do that you have to be killed within an hour of taking the potion for it to work. It's too dangerous for you to kill each other as it might go wrong. At least Tom is certain to kill you. It's the best way."_

 _It would be better if he kills the both of you, then you two killing each other or yourselves. It's the best way."_

 _Luna, as she had done so much in the past, broke down into tears and cried into Draco's shoulder while Harry rubbed her back. Harry and Draco made eye contact and Harry nodded. Draco pulled Luna off his chest and put her into Harry's arms. He made his way towards the door and reached a hand out to open it before speaking, not turning back._

" _You know, Harry," Draco began, his voice wavering. "All those years ago … on the Hogwarts Express, I mean … I was prepared to drop my family if you agreed to be my friend. But you didn't shake my hand. When you go back, try to talk some sense into me. I promise you, I will come around eventually."_

 _When Draco did not move to open the door, Harry spoke._

 _"I will," he said simply._

 _With that, Draco inclined his head and exited the door, shutting it quickly, though Harry was acutely aware that the sky outside was blood red._

 _For the next four days, Harry and Luna prepared to take the potion and made their memories. They were each allowed to place sixty minutes worth of memories into the cauldron and they decided to, instead of using existing memories which would lack the context necessary to understand them, place memories of the other talking to them into the cauldron. That way they could get the most out of the sixty minutes. The potion would be able to differentiate between the memories and only give the memories of Harry talking to the younger Luna and the memory of Luna talking to the younger Harry._

 _On the second to last day, Harry and Luna placed their memories into the potion which changed from a deep blue colour to a sickly green, not unlike the colour of the Killing Curse. This showed them they had done it correctly. They then followed that up with a piece of parchment with the date and time they wanted the memories to be sent to. They had decided on that years ago. They had to leave it for a day and then do the final ritual the next. So they tried to sleep. Neither could._

* * *

Harry and Luna looked into each other's eyes again and knew what the other was feeling. Relief. Anxiety. Nervousness. They knew that within minutes they would be facing their death to save the world. Just as Dennis had. Just as Draco had. They felt no guilt. They felt no shame. They felt no anger. They felt no resentment. All they felt was love. For their fallen family and friends. For Dennis. For Draco. But most of all, for each other.

They leaned over the cauldron and their lips met for a brief moment, both knowing that anything more would be a waste of time. Their foreheads met and they both looked down at the now still potion. At that very moment the Room of Requirement provided them with two flasks.

When the two flasks were filled with the correct amount each, Harry and Luna both drank, not waiting for their brains to tell them to stop. They both shuddered at the ice-cold feeling that ran down their throats. Both were aware of the foul taste, but neither cared. They stood together and Harry took Luna's smaller hand in his as they walked towards the ornate door of the Room of Requirement, leaving the three wands, the pewter cauldron and the old-style Muggle CD player, still playing music after all those years, behind.

 _Me and you baby,  
Still flush all the pain away.  
So before I end my day,  
Remember...  
My sweet prince,  
You are the one.  
My sweet prince,  
You are the one.  
You are the one.  
You are the one.  
You are the one.  
You are the one.  
You are the one.  
You are the one.  
You are the one.  
You are the one.  
My sweet prince.  
My sweet prince._

Harry opened the door and they both stepped through, gasping at what they saw. The world seemed to be on fire. The sky was blood-red, just as Harry thought he had seen when Draco exited the Room. There were no buildings in sight and there wasn't any plant or animal life left. Harry and Luna both wanted to cry at the sight but they kept their wits about them. Within seconds of stepping out of the room, there was a crack and there, in front of them, stood Tom Marvolo Riddle, not aged a bit since they last saw him. He was still bald, still had slits for nostrils and still had snake-like glowing red eyes. He laughed the high-pitched laugh that haunted both Harry's and Luna's dreams.

"I must say, you two certainly took your time. I was beginning to think you were dead," Tom Riddle said with a large, ugly grin on his face. "No matter. I have waited fourteen years for this. Prepare to die!"

Harry and Luna turned to face each other and Harry soon found himself with Luna's arms wrapped around his neck and they were kissing deeply and passionately. Tom Riddle laughed again but Harry and Luna ignored him, choosing to focus on each other.

"How … touching. It is very fitting that the last thing any mortals do on this Earth is engage in pitiful love," Tom Riddle sneered, his red eyes glistening. "The old man was wrong, Harry James Potter. Love is not your weapon. Love was never your weapon. Love can be destroyed. _AVADA KEDAVRA_!"

The Killing Curse hit both Harry and Luna at the same time and they fell to the ground in each other's arms, locked in an embrace that was the end of time itself. Two beings bound together by flesh and love would be the last thing the timeline would ever experience. The last thing either of them felt was the silent tears mingling together on their faces.

Tom Riddle was wrong.


	2. New Memories

**_Disclaimer:_** _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

—CHAPTER ONE—

 _New Memories_

"May I take your coats, Mr and Mrs Mason?" Harry Potter heard his cousin, Dudley Dursley, say downstairs at Number Four, Privet Drive. However, Harry wasn't paying attention to Dudley in that moment. What he _was_ paying attention to was the small creature on his bed. Whatever it was had large, bat-like ears and bulging green eyes the size of tennis balls. When he took in what it looked like, Harry realised that this was the thing that he had seen in the bushes earlier that very same day.

The creature leapt off Harry's bed and bowed so low that it's long nose brushed the overly clean carpet. Harry noticed that it was wearing a stained pillowcase that was ripped in places. His mind was working overtime to come up with an excuse for Uncle Vernon as to why this thing was in his room. Despite not knowing what the creature was, Harry was convinced that it had something to do with magic, and Uncle Vernon would absolutely jump at the chance to reprimand Harry should he ever set his beady eyes on that creature.

"Er … hello," Harry said, his voice managing to sound nervous, anxious and awkward at the same time. The creature's eyes seemed to bulge even further out of their sockets.

"Harry Potter!" the creature said in a very high-pitched voice that Harry was concerned would carry downstairs. All he had to do was wait for Uncle Vernon to show up and it was all over. "So long has Dobby wanted to meet you, sir … such an honour it is."

Harry wanted to back away but at the name "Dobby" something happened in his head. It was like a switch turned on.

A very painful switch.

All in the space of a second, Harry remembered Luna Lovegood talking to him, telling him about the past. Or was it future? He wasn't sure. He felt as though he had known this woman his whole life, and yet he had no knowledge of who she was. She was familiar, yet unfamiliar. The memory was there, plain as day, and yet he could not understand it. In among all of this was a sharp pain that ran through his head like a bolt of lightning. It felt like his scar was burning, yet more powerful and for a more extended period of time.

The pain got so bad that Harry collapsed to the floor. The pain continued as the blonde-haired, silver-eyed woman talked, her mouth moving at a seemingly impossible rate, her words mingling together and coming out making no sense whatsoever. Harry reached for his head, and before his hands could touch, the pain was gone in an instant, replaced with a dull feeling.

Harry felt a finger touch his head. It was longer and bonier than a humans, so he assumed that it belonged to Dobby. Moments later he noticed that the House Elf was also talking quickly, but quietly. _Wait. Elf?_ Harry asked himself. Luna Lovegood's face popped into his mind once again, but this time her words made sense.

" _You will be having a conversation with Dobby, the House Elf, when I come to you, Harry._ "

There was a warmness to the woman's voice and face that he didn't think he had ever felt before. It was somehow as though this woman had known him for years and her voice betrayed that she cared deeply for him in a way no one ever had before. It was heartening, though Harry still could not understand what was going on, even though some part of him seemed to understand it completely and utterly. Unbidden, his mind went to the image of a potion and three wands. Two on the edge of the pewter cauldron and one lying across the middle. One he recognised as his own, but failed to recognise the other two. It was in thinking about this potion that he remembered what it was.

The potion was known colloquially as "In Remembrance". It sent memories back in time. It could be used for one or two people, and each of them gain the memories that they put into the mix. Miraculously, Harry suddenly understood what had happened. He pushed himself off of the ground, glad that he could not hear Uncle Vernon thundering up the stairs. He knew exactly what needed to be done and walked to his small dresser and pulled out a sock before turning back to Dobby, who was looking both frantic and intrigued.

"Dobby," Harry began. "You need clothes to be free don't you?"

"Yes, Harry Potter, sir. But you can't be giving Dobby the clothes. Dobby must be being given clothes by Dobby's family," Dobby said quietly, eyeing the sock in Harry's hand.

"What if I gave you this sock to give to your master as an … anonymous gift and he threw it away and then you caught it?" Harry asked, echoing the memory of Luna nearly word for word. The House Elf's eyes bulged even further.

"That – that could work, Harry Potter, sir," Dobby said while shaking his head, obviously amazed at the simple answer. He went to grab the sock but Harry held it back. Dobby then looked like a very sad dog.

"I'll give you the sock to give to Lucius," Harry said. Dobby gasped but said nothing. "But you have to do something for me while you're there. Lucius will have a diary. One with T.M. Riddle written on the back of it. I need that diary, Dobby." Harry didn't really understand what the importance of the Diary was, but Luna had said to get it and despite not understanding it all, Harry decided to comply.

Dobby looked conflicted as he glanced between his pillowcase and the sock. It took Dobby close to five minutes to finally make a decision, during which time Harry waited patiently, his mind on other things.

"Okay, Harry Potter, sir," he said, his eyes still conflicted. "Dobby will do as you say. But Dobby can only steal from Master Lucius once I catch the great Harry Potter's sock."

"That's fine, Dobby," Harry said with a smile as he handed over the sock. "Just do what you can." The House Elf nodded and there was a pop as he left. When he was gone, Harry flopped onto his bed, glad that he avoided any kind of ordeal with Dobby.

As he sat and waited, he reflected on his newfound memory of Luna. He knew that he had never met her before in his life, but at the same time he felt that he knew her better than he knew anyone. It wasn't only Luna he thought about, however.

As he focused on the memory, some rather disturbing facts came to his mind about what she had said within it. Some so disturbing that the twelve year old simply pushed the memory away and tried to remember the look on Dudley's face when he thought Harry was doing magic earlier in the day. Harry smiled at that memory as he sighed contentedly, lying facing the roof of his room.

It was perhaps five minutes later that Dobby returned, clutching Harry's sock in his hands reverently. Harry couldn't help but smile.

"I did as Master Harry Potter be saying," Dobby said excitedly as he reached into his pillowcase and brought out the black diary. Harry slowly took hold of it and looked it over, noticing the golden T.M. Riddle on the back of it. It was only when he had finished examining it and put it safely away in his trunk that Harry realised what Dobby had said.

"Dobby ... I-I'm not your master," Harry spluttered. Dobby smiled and nodded his head.

"Yes you is! Yes you is!" Dobby was jumping up and down on the bed. "I is bonding with you when evil Lucius set Dobby free. I is your Elf now!" Harry really didn't know what to say.

"Well … that's great Dobby. But you can't be seen here. My relatives would freak out." Harry started to sound very worried and Dobby's expression was upsetting but then it brightened.

"I is hearing, Master Harry Potter, that House Elves that is not doing anything go to work in kitchens of Hogwarts … Dobby could do that." Dobby sounded both elated and sad at the same time.

"Yes. That'd be great Dobby. But can you do something for me before you go?" Dobby nodded so hard that his ears flapped like wings.

"Yes, Master Harry Potter, sir. Anything!" Dobby was jumping once again. Harry thought back to Luna's original wording.

"Float my Aunt's pudding onto the heads of the guests in this house. But make sure the Ministry can't tell it was me," Harry replied, trying his best to say precisely what Luna had said. Dobby nodded again. "Oh. And give me my letters."

Dobby looked at his overly large feet before producing the stack of letters and giving them to Harry.

"It will be done, Master Harry Potter, sir," Dobby said before there was a pop and Dobby disappeared. Harry lay back in his bed once more, sighing contentedly and thinking about the strange, yet familiar conversation with Luna Lovegood. There was a lot that concerned him in that conversation that he remembered having but had never had. _For neither can live while the other survives_ , Harry thought with a great sense of unease. And then there was what Luna had said about Draco Malfoy. She had said to try and make peace and become friends with him. And from Harry's memory, he had agreed with that decision, though he did not fully understand how or why he would do that.

Then there were names that he did not know. Colin Creevey. Dennis Creevey. Fleur Delacour. Viktor Krum. Kingsley Shacklebolt. Alastor Moody. Nymphadora Tonks. Remus Lupin. Sirius Black. _Who are those people?_ Harry thought. Somehow Luna, and he, had trusted all of these people when they sent back the memories. He knew that some of them had a part in the memories, but they were just names. He had no idea who they were, only that they were important.

Perhaps the scariest was when Luna said that Snape was, without a doubt, on their side. She said that she would not say why she could be so utterly certain, but only that she knew it to be true. From Harry's memory he could feel that he had agreed with everything that she had said. Somehow all the knowledge that he acquired through that spontaneous memory seemed right. Despite this, he knew as well that there was something missing.

He needed to talk to Luna. He needed to get to the Rook in Ottery St. Catchpole and he needed to do it as soon as possible.

That was why he had sent Dobby to drop the pudding on the guests of Number Four. It was the only way to make certain that Ron, Fred and George would be in less trouble for flying Arthur Weasley's flying car. It also gave Harry a good reason to not have written to his friends. When he thought about Ron, something stood out from Luna's conversation. Something he didn't really want to acknowledge at the time. All he knew was that his friendship with Ron was one of the only things in his life that he cared about.

He knew his plan was working when he finally heard the thundering footsteps of Uncle Vernon who was, much to Harry's astonishment, running upstairs. Never had Harry been so happy to hear his angry uncle.

* * *

Luna Lovegood was sitting alone in her room, twirling her nine inch, ebony and Phoenix feather wand between the fingers of her right hand, trying to sort her thoughts. Ginevra had stopped talking to her after her brothers had returned home from Hogwarts, which hurt her, as Ginevra was her only real friend.

Sure, her father was her friend, but there was a very large difference between being a father and being a friend and Luna knew that both she and her father knew that all too well. Even despite that, they were extremely close. They often went in search of Crumple-Horned Snorkacks or any number of creatures that her father reported on in his magazine, _The Quibbler_. It was Luna's favourite thing to do, and they did it as often as they could.

She looked to her floor and came to the conclusion that she needed to tidy up soon. It was covered in old editions of _The Quibbler_ that she liked to re-read from time to time. She was always proud that her father continued to print the magazine despite what many people said about it and, indeed, him. _The Quibbler_ was not for those people, and her father was just doing what he thought was in the best interests of the wider community.

Despite the close relationship with her father, Luna was very lonely and had felt so ever since her mother had died just over two years before. Luna had been there when her mother's spell had backfired on her, killing her almost instantly. She had only been spared because her mother had erected a shield charm in front of her before attempting the experiment. Luna was too young at the time to understand what her mother was doing, and she had no idea what to do.

Her father was not there when it happened as he was in Austria doing some research on a creature that he had not yet told Luna about. So Luna did the only thing she could think of. She closed her eyes and cried. And within a minute she heard the motherly voice of Mrs Weasley asking what was wrong. Luna told her what had happened while Mr Weasley comforted her. Somehow Luna had gotten to the Living Room of the Burrow.

It was understandable that Mr and Mrs Weasley needed to go to her house and check on her mother, so while they were gone they left Luna in the arms of William who was comforting her like she was his own little sister. Despite everything that was happening at the time, Luna felt protected and safe. Sometime later, Mr and Mrs Weasley had arrived back at the Burrow told her the bad news. Luna didn't cry when she heard it, which surprised everyone.

Since she had to stay with the Weasleys until her father came home, she shared a room with Ginevra. She did nothing during the stay except lay on her makeshift bed and stare at the lopsided ceiling. She did not move for three days until her father returned and picked her up off the bed. Only then did the tired young girl finally let the tears flow.

The summer before she was to leave for Hogwarts for the first time was becoming positively unbearable for her. Ginevra had seemingly abandoned her because Ronald had become something of a celebrity to her as a result of his stories about Harry Potter. Luna had listened at first but soon realised that a lot of what Ronald was saying was either completely exaggerated or complete lies. Ginevra didn't seem to think so, and continued to ask her brother questions, all of which he willingly answered. All the while, Luna stayed at the Rook alone and friendless.

 _Harry Potter sounds like such a good friend_ , Luna told herself sadly. It was only when she thought those words that the pain hit her like a charging Snorkack. She dropped her wand and it clattered on the floor as she fell backwards on her bed, clutching at her head. She managed not to yell but it still hurt beyond anything Luna had felt before in her young life.

Slowly, something began to happen in her mind. An older man with greying hair and rectangular glasses sat in front of her, his mouth moving, but the words she heard didn't match his mouth. She felt a vast array of feelings as well, some of which she had felt before and some she hadn't. It hurt so much. Then, all of a sudden something changed and it didn't hurt at all.

She sat up on her bed for a moment before bending down and picking her wand up, which she began twirling in her hand once again, the memory of Harry Potter now ingrained in her head. As she twirled the wand she remembered the conversation like it had only just happened. She also remembered the pewter cauldron, a wand she recognised and two she didn't. She knew what they had done, and why they had done it.

Harry spoke of great evil and very Dark Magic in the new memory. Some of it so Dark that Luna began to feel quite ill. The main topic of the conversation was Horcruxes. Harry didn't explain in any great detail what a Horcrux was or anything other than that they had to be destroyed in order to kill Voldemort, a man who Luna and her father were convinced was not dead at all. He spoke of hiding places, items, living beings and even mentioned that he was a Horcrux as well. He also said what it would take to destroy one.

He had also talked a bit about Voldemort's childhood and what led to him creating the Horcruxes. For a moment, Luna thought she could feel the feelings of her older self. It was pity, she realised, for the little boy from the orphanage. It was odd to think that she could feel such a thing for someone that would grow up to be what he became, and Luna wondered if the nargles had anything to do with it. She performed a routine check, and found that they could not be involved.

The last warning that Harry gave was one that Luna was going to have a lot of trouble with. He said that she was not allowed to tell anyone else until they consulted Albus Dumbledore at Hogwarts on the topic. That, however, was not the last thing that Harry had said. He had told her that he would see her in a matter of days. He said that he would make sure he went to see her the day after he arrived via the Weasleys' flying car if she could not see him first.

Luna stopped twirling her wand, stood up from her bed, stuck her wand behind her ear and looked out of the window of her room and realised something with absolute clarity. Harry Potter was her friend. When she thought about the memory she felt something towards Harry that she had not felt for anyone. The closest she could think of was her parents, but this still felt different. She wasn't quite sure what to make of it as she stared over towards the tree line separating the Rook and the Burrow

 _Only a few days_ , Luna told herself before sighing and laying on her bed. It was definitely going to be a long few days.

* * *

 _ **2036**_

 _Harry, Luna, Dennis and Draco had been inside the Room of Requirement for nearly three years, and they found themselves in a never-ending cycle of depression, boredom and guilt. Though the Room of Requirement had given them virtually unending things with which to occupy their time, with the entire Hogwarts Library, as well as books that had likely never been in the school library, at their disposal, a Quidditch Pitch on hand when they wanted it and even, sometimes, replications of houses, Common Rooms and even, very rarely, entire geographical locations._

 _They had discovered fairly early on that the Room was capable of basically anything they asked for. Even more so than had been possible before. Draco had come to the conclusion that a possible reason why this was the case could have been the lack of magic left around it after Voldemort wiped out most of Magical Britain. He theorised that perhaps now that it was one of the last vestiges of magic left on the planet, it had somehow become stronger. If Draco was correct in his assessment, even with its new strength, it could only produce replications of places for a limited amount of time._

 _For the most part, the four of them were spending their time alone. Mostly they spent time in their respective rooms reading various books. When this finally became too much for them, they found brooms and flew around the Quidditch pitch together, though this was mostly Harry and Draco._

 _Their internment in the Room of Requirement would have been so much worse if it weren't for the fact that all of them had been in hiding in some form since 2020. Before entering into the Room, they had lived in Hogwarts with ten other people for close to six years, and that was it. They had grown very used to being alone with very few people. At least, with the brewing of the Potion, they had something to live for._

 _It was the end of August, if the calendar provided to them could be trusted, and Harry was sitting in the living room with a fiction book. Harry had never been one to read fiction when he was younger, but due to their lack of any entertainment Harry had rarely stopped reading them. The Room of Requirement provided them with many books, both Magical and Muggle in origin. Harry assumed that it had taken what it could find in the wastes of the world and put them all here._

 _The book that Harry was reading was the third book in an epic fantasy series written by an American author that he had not heard of before finding the books in the Room of Requirement. He was thoroughly enjoying them. Meanwhile, Dennis was across from him lying on a sofa, deep in sleep. When Luna walked into the room, Harry barely paid her any mind. As Dennis was asleep on one sofa, Luna sat next to Harry. Harry kept reading, enthralled, until Luna spoke._

" _How are you, Harry?" Luna asked. Harry looked at her._

" _I'm okay," he replied. "I'm enjoying this book. The library has six in the series, so I'm halfway through. Although I don't think it has the last one. It would be a shame for it to remain incomplete."_

" _That's nice, but it wasn't really what I was asking," Luna replied. Harry sighed, took note of the page number and closed the book._

" _What do you want to know?" he asked._

" _We've been living in here for years," Luna explained. "The last time we saw the outside world was the last people we knew slaughtered. Teddy. Ginny. You've never talked about it."_

" _What's the use of talking about it?" Harry asked irritably. "It happened. We all knew it would happen eventually and it did. Now we need to focus on the potion. After that it won't be a problem anymore."_

 _Luna looked Harry over for a moment, trying to ascertain whether she should push any harder._

" _I suppose you're right," she said finally. "I'm just glad you can be so strong."_

" _Strong?" Harry asked, bitterly. "Strong would be leaving this place and taking Voldemort on for good. Instead I'm in here reading good books just to stop thinking about the fact that damn near everyone I ever cared about is dead at the hands of the man I was supposed to stop. Yeah, I know that I shouldn't blame myself for the Prophecy. You've all been telling me that ever since Voldemort returned. It doesn't mean I don't blame myself, though. My entire family is gone, Luna. Do you know what it's like? Growing up without a family and then when I finally get one, it's all taken away from me piece by piece. First my sons. Then my daughter. Then my godson. Then the love of my life. I'm back where I started._

" _No, it's worse than that," Harry said, tears now falling from his eyes for the first time in over three years. "At least my stay at the Dursleys' got me to Hogwarts where I made friends. Where I eventually started to make a proper family. Luna, we have no future here. There's no way out of this. Even if we manage to make this potion correctly, it won't be us who receives those memories. It will be someone else. Someone I'm struggling to remember because he died somewhere along the line. We will die here, Luna, and we have to place our trust in young versions of ourselves that didn't get it right the first time around. What if they get it wrong? The potion again? How long will it take? And how often must we see loved ones die in front of us before we just finally give up hope?"_

 _For a minute, Harry sat crying. Then he felt lips on his. It wasn't much. In fact, it was nearly nothing at all. But when he opened his eyes, he was no longer crying. Luna's silvery eyes glittering. She leaned her forehead against his and looked into his emerald eyes._

" _I lost my family too," she said quietly. "Dad. Rolf. Lorcan and Lysander. I lost them all. Dennis lost his family. Draco lost his. We're all in this together, Harry. Maybe you're right. Maybe at the end of all this, we will just die here, our memories passed on to other people. But until then, we're stuck here and Voldemort can't get at us. He could destroy anything and everything, but we will still be here. We have to make the best of it. Whether that's Quidditch or reading, we need to find meaning in a life that we know has none."_

 _Harry looked into her eyes for a few seconds before kissing her again, being much more proactive about it this time. When he and Luna broke apart, Harry smiled._

" _I love you," Luna said quietly, her voice a whisper. Harry shivered._

" _I love you too," he replied._

 _Neither of them had heard those words in so long that it almost broke their hearts. They came together once more._

* * *

Three excruciating days passed for Harry. Despite his newfound knowledge of the future, and the thoughts about Luna, he still was twelve and locked in his room with bars on his windows. Though his aunt was feeding him through a cat flap on the door, he gave all of that food to Hedwig and called upon Dobby to bring him some better food, which the House Elf did happily.

Harry was feeling incredibly restless, but was also feeling excitement at the prospect that the Weasleys would show up that very night, assuming nothing too major had been changed and that the memories he had weren't some kind of cruel trick. He didn't believe that they were, though. They had been right about Dobby, after all.

It was already dark and he made sure that everything in his room was within reach. He wasn't sure what he was going to do about his things that were locked in the cupboard under the stairs, but if Fred and George were coming he was sure that they would work something out.

Luckily, Harry had a lot to think about while he was imprisoned in Privet Drive, most of it focused around what he now knew about his own future. Whenever he thought too hard about the memory, he could sense that there was something strange about it that he couldn't quite work out. It was like there were several missing puzzle pieces and without them the whole picture couldn't be seen. He only hoped that Luna could somehow illuminate him when they met up.

He seemed to get lost in his thoughts as he saw the headlights of what he assumed was the Weasleys' flying car approaching his window. As the car was "parked" next to his window, he couldn't help but stare. Even though he had known that it was coming, seeing a flying blue and white car outside of his window was a sight that he would not soon forget.

"Hey, Harry!" Ron said happily from the car.

"Hi, Ron," Harry replied breathlessly, wondering how exactly they planned to get him out of the room. As if in response to his unasked question, the closest twin to the barred window produced a long rope. "Uh … guys? Is this going to be loud?" Harry began to feel worried when Fred and George wore identical grins.

"I very much hope so, Harrykins," one of them said. Harry couldn't tell which one was talking.

"Would we be us if we were quiet?" the other twin asked.

"But Uncle Vernon will hear you," Harry said worriedly.

"Not to worry," the twin that Harry decided was Fred said happily. "Just stand back and we'll do the rest."

Fred reached out of the car window and tied the rope around the bars and gave it one last pull before seemingly declaring it safe. The car then pulled away from the window and Harry realised that the rope was tied to the end of it. He heard one of the twins say something and the car lurched forwards, pulling the rope and, consequently, the bars out with it. Contrary to what Harry had expected, they didn't seem to make much of a noise at all. Harry listened for any tell-tale signs that the Dursleys had sensed that anything was amiss but he heard nothing.

Fred, George and Ron pulled up next to the window once again.

"Get your stuff and jump in," Ron said hurriedly. Harry passed Hedwig out to them, remembering Luna's words.

"My Hogwarts stuff isn't here though," Harry said, not getting into the car. Fred and George glanced at each other before opening the car door and leaping through the now open window, entering through where the bars used to be. Harry watched on in amusement as the one he was calling George pulled out a hairpin and picked the lock on his door.

"Can't use magic all the time, Harrykins," George said with a grin. Fred nodded his assent as they got the door open. "Besides, it may be slow but it's worth learning." Harry smiled.

"Watch for the bottom stair. It creaks." The twins nodded in unison and disappeared into the house. Harry then took that opportunity to pick up his letters as well as a few bits and pieces, like the photo album Hagrid had given him, and quickly made his way into the car with Ron who then proceeded to reverse the car to the window and opened the trunk with a button on the dashboard.

"Alright Harry?" Ron asked. Harry found that he wouldn't meet his eyes.

"Yeah. Yeah, fine," Harry said sounding distracted. Harry and Ron heard a thump in the trunk so they assumed Fred and George had made their way back so Ron moved the car around to let them in. One of the twins, George likely, got in the driver's seat and the sped away. The Dursleys had not even awoken during the whole ordeal.

"Harry, let Hedwig out and she can fly behind us. Looks like she hasn't been out in a ages," Ron said as they flew away. Harry did so, not even telling Ron how right he was. "So why did you have bars on your window?" Ron asked quietly, but both Fred and George heard. Harry decided to tell them what Luna had said would happen except he told them that Dobby was his Elf now. He neglected to tell them that he had ordered Dobby to float the pudding or that Dobby was the Malfoys' Elf.

"You have an Elf?" Fred asked sounding shocked. " _And_ got it set free? After it tried to stop you from going to Hogwarts? And stole all of your letters?" Harry laughed.

"I guess so," he replied, smiling broadly.

"Wicked," all three Weasleys said as one. After remembering what Luna had said about Ron, he wondered what, exactly, he meant by that one exclamation. Harry knew that the twins saw it as one massive prank so he could understand their sentiments. But was Ron saying it because of that or because The Boy Who Lived had done it? He didn't like thinking about his best friend like this, but there must have been a reason that Luna had mentioned it.

The four talked, primarily about Quidditch, for the remainder of the flight and Harry felt content knowing that he would get to at least talk to Luna, this mysterious person who had entered his life so suddenly. He felt that he knew her well, yet had never met her. It was a very strange sensation to say the least.

The sun was soon rising and Harry saw a village on the horizon. It appeared, however, that they weren't going there because the car suddenly swerved and they headed to a very tall, awkward looking house. Harry assumed that it had to be held up by magic because he really couldn't see how it could stand on its own.

"Going down!" George announced as they headed down towards the ground. "Touchdown!" he cried as the wheels hit the ground. Harry quickly got out of the car followed by Ron, Fred and George. Fred and George got Harry's trunk out while Harry carried what he had in the car with him.

Harry read a sign near the house that read "The Burrow" and admired the amazing looking building. Apparently Ron had seen him.

"It's not much," he said quietly, as though embarrassed.

"It's brilliant!" Harry exclaimed, truly believing what he was saying. Ron looked sceptical but walked towards the house without saying anything more about it.

"If we're really quiet, maybe Mum won't even notice we were gone," Ron mumbled. Harry had his doubts but went along with it. As he could have predicted, Mrs Weasley ran out of the house, looking strangely like a sabre-tooth tiger, Harry thought. She came to a halt and put her hands on her hips.

" _So_ ," she began threateningly.

"Sooo …" George said lamely.

"Have you any idea how worried I've been?" Mrs Weasley said in a deadly whisper. Fred looked about to say something but he, George and Ron all cowered in fear as Mrs Weasley glared at them all.

"Beds empty! No note! Car gone … could have crashed … out of my mind with worry … did you care? … Never as long as I've lived … you wait until your father gets home, we never had this trouble with Bill or Charlie or Percy." Ron mumbled something that sounded like "perfect Percy" but was quieted by his mother glaring at him. "YOU COULD TAKE A LEAF OUT OF PERCY'S BOOK!" Mrs Weasley yelled, prodding Ron in the chest. "You could have _died_ , you could have been _seen_ , you could have cost your father his job –"

"Uh … Mrs Weasley?" Harry asked timidly. The plump woman's face changed entirely when she looked at him.

"Yes, Harry, dear?" she asked with a warm smile.

"They were only saving me," he explained meekly. "The Dursleys were keeping me hostage in my room. They put bars on my windows and fed me through a cat flap." Mrs Weasley looked horrified at this.

"They did what?!" Mrs Weasley screamed. "And you had to stay with them?" Harry nodded sadly. "Well not to worry, Harry. You can stay with us for the rest of the summer." She then rounded on the Weasley children. "I understand your reasons, but you will all be grounded until further notice. And I will have to tell your father."

The three Weasleys looked like Christmas had come early and nodded their heads quickly and sharply before running into the house, the twins taking Harry's trunk with them. Mrs Weasley looked at Harry again.

"You do look underfed. Tell me, dear," Mrs Weasley smiled at him, "how do you like your eggs?"


	3. First Time Reunion

**_Disclaimer:_** _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

—CHAPTER TWO—

 _First Time Reunion_

Life at The Burrow was quite the experience for Harry on that first day. Ron, Fred and George all got punished for flying the car and were forced to do menial tasks to make up for what they had done. Ron had to de-gnome the garden, Fred had to clean a few rooms without magic and George got stuck cleaning out the attic, which Harry was told was quite possibly the worst task of the three.

He had never been in a more interesting house. It was taller than any normal house he had seen, though it was skinny. Everywhere he looked there was a mixture of magical and Muggle knick-knacks, most of which had been accrued over the years by Mr Weasley, he had been told.

Mrs Weasley was incredibly nice to Harry, as was Percy when Harry actually saw him, which was very rarely. Ginny seemed to be awestruck whenever he was around and mostly kept to herself. This was something Memory-Luna had mentioned in the memory, so he knew to expect it.

When Harry recalled that part of the memory, he could almost feel something that he couldn't quite place. It felt similar to what he felt towards Luna, but wrong somehow. The feeling was difficult to grasp and whenever he thought he had gotten a handle on it, it seemed to slip away. At times he thought it might have been guilt, though he couldn't be entirely sure. In the end, he just tried not to think very much about it.

"Harry, dear," Mrs Weasley began at breakfast on his second day at The Burrow. Harry was currently the only person awake in the house other than Mrs Weasley, who was happily cooking bacon and eggs. "Xeno Lovegood, he lives close by with his daughter Luna, contacted me last night to see if Luna could come over for today. I do hope you'll be nice to her. Poor girl. Ginny is her only friend and her mother died about two years ago."

Harry's heart started to beat faster. He was almost certain that Luna had set this up herself somehow. Memory Luna had said that they would have to talk to piece everything together, and he was certainly seeing that to be true. Harry had information from his memory that Luna didn't get from hers and vice versa. Harry tried to not look too excited.

"Don't worry, Mrs Weasley. I think it would be nice to meet someone new," Harry said with a smile. Mrs Weasley beamed at him.

"Thank you, dear. She'll be over in about an hour. She knows the way, so she'll come here herself. It seems that Xeno is off chasing some strange animal or other." Harry wondered why he would do that and decided that he would have to ask Luna about it. It suddenly occurred to him that it may be a problem getting her alone to actually talk to her, especially if she spends all of her time with Ginny. Harry almost laughed. _All I have to do is just walk into the room and Ginny'll squeal and run away_. Harry laughed in his head if not aloud. Maybe it would be just that easy.

About half an hour later, the rest of the Burrow began to stir, and half an hour after that, Ron finally made his way downstairs, the last to do so.

"How long've you been up?" he asked Harry, stifling a yawn. Harry shrugged.

"A couple of hours," Harry replied. Ron's jaw dropped.

"A couple of hours? You're completely mental! Like Hermione you are!" Harry just shrugged as Ron helped himself to his breakfast. Ron didn't talk for a while and when he decided to, he just happened to have some egg in his mouth. "Whaddya wanna do today?"

"Well, your mum said that a girl's coming over. Luna I think her name was. Might hang around with her for a while," Harry said, even convincing himself that he really didn't know who she was, which, he supposed, he really didn't. Once more, Ron's mouth fell agape, this time with egg still in it. Harry cringed until Ron decided to swallow.

"You want to spend time with _Loony_?" Ron asked incredulously. Harry surprised himself when he felt himself stiffen and got extremely angry. "Who would want to do _that_? Nah. You'll come flying with me!"

"Listen, Ron," Harry said in a deathly cool voice. "I don't think you should call people names." Ron was taken aback by Harry's abruptness.

"What? 'Loony'? But she is!" Ron exclaimed with a laugh. Harry realised that Mrs Weasley was no longer in the room so, acting on some instinct that he didn't know he had, he grabbed Ron by the scruff of his shirt and pulled him close. Ron's eyes were bugging out.

"So, Ron. You like calling people names do you?" Harry asked calmly. "You know, something? The Dursleys have names for me. Freak. Boy. Him. Tell me Ron, are you like the Dursleys? Is that what you're trying to tell me?" Ron's eyes showed how frightened he was as he murmured a feeble "no". Harry dropped the shirt and left the room, leaving a frightened Ron to finish his breakfast alone.

Harry decided to wait in the living room with the twins until Luna came. Harry found that living in the same house with the twins was far more entertaining than living in Gryffindor Tower with them. For one thing, they managed to blew things up more often, despite not being allowed to use magic at home. For another, they were always pranking someone. They had yet to try to prank him, and he knew that it would be his turn soon enough. In fact, he was looking forward to them doing it.

"So, Harrykins!" Fred exclaimed, putting an arm around Harry's shoulder. George then followed suit.

"Mind telling us exactly _why_ you manhandled our dumbest brother?" George asked. Harry laughed because he could tell there was no malice coming from either of them. He knew that the twins would know everything that goes in that house so he wasn't surprised by the question.

"Tell me, what do you two think of Luna Lovegood?" Harry asked. Fred and George looked at each other, obviously trying to work out how she factored into the whole situation.

"She's a little strange," Fred admitted.

"But we don't mind her," George said with a smile.

"She's really a breath of fresh air," Fred continued.

"Especially when she gets into a conversation with Perce," George said as the two laughed. Harry liked that they were honest.

"So you wouldn't, say, call her 'Loony'?" Harry asked. Fred and George's eyes hardened.

"No. Only Ron ever calls her that," Fred said darkly.

"The rest of us are smart enough to realise –"

"– that we shouldn't make fun of a girl who lost her mum."

"We aren't sure that Ron understands."

"But we sure do. We would never call her 'Loony'," Fred finished. Harry was surprised at the tone from the normally joking twins.

"I take it dear old Ronniekins called her that?" George asked. Harry nodded.

"Your mum told me she was coming over today, so I told Ron that I'd hang out with her for a while and he acted like I told him that Quidditch wasn't real," Harry said. Fred and George nodded in tandem with overly solemn looks on their faces which made Harry struggle to not laugh.

"We've lost count of the number of times we –" George said.

"– And everyone else in the family –" Fred added.

"– Have told Ron off about that."

"He just can't seem to get it through his overly large –"

"– Thick boned –"

"– Dungbomb brain –"

"– Head of his," George finished. They then looked at each other and grinned.

"Wait right here, Harry," Fred said as both twins leapt from the seat and flew up the stairs leading to their room. Harry waited a minute before the twins came down carrying what looked to be a picnic basket. They snuck over to Harry, looking around the room to make sure they weren't caught, and slowly opened it up. Inside were any number of brightly coloured sweets. Harry knew better then to touch them seeing as they had come from the twins and that they seemed to not want anyone to know about them.

"We've been working on these all year so far, Harry," George said proudly.

"What are they?" Harry asked, picking up a blue one and observing it closely.

"Well that one right there is a Tongue-Tie Toffee," Fred said happily. "I'd advise you not to eat that one just yet. It works, but it takes ages to wear off. They're in the very earliest stages. We've got them working, and they won't poison someone, but there's still a lot to do."

"When we tested it on Percy about a week ago, he couldn't talk for two straight days. Mum thought he'd gotten on the wrong end of a silencing charm." George laughed.

"And why are you showing me these?" Harry asked, placing the blue sweet back in the basket. Fred and George grinned in tandem, both looking as evil as the other.

"Well, since you asked," Fred said.

"We want to help you get back at Ickle Ronniekins for his foul mouth," George said gleefully.

"As such, we will allow you to pick five of these sweets that we will administer when we see fit," Fred said equally as gleefully. They both pushed the basket forward, urging Harry to pick.

"Well, go on then," George urged, checking his surroundings to make sure no one was about. "Pick five." Harry didn't know anything about what they did but he picked a blue one (the Tongue-Tie Toffee), a red one, a silver and green one, a yellow one and a rainbow one. Fred and George seemed to be overly excited about the rainbow one.

"Look out for when we use that one," Fred said happily.

"In fact, we'll tell you so you can be there when it happens!" George said.

"Now if you'll excuse us. We have evidence to hide." With that they disappeared upstairs and didn't come down for a good two hours.

Harry moved from the living room to the outside of the house to wait for Luna. He saw Mrs Weasley busying herself trying to round up some chickens while no one else could be seen. Ron was likely still eating while Ginny was undoubtedly still hiding from Harry. Harry then looked over to a clearing where a young blonde girl with big blue eyes was standing, looking at him.

Harry couldn't contain his excitement. He walked over to the trees very quickly and found that Luna was leading him into them. He followed her for a little bit and soon found that they were deep enough to not be seen by any of the Weasleys.

Harry walked up to Luna who was about to say something, but Harry leant over and, not really knowing what he was doing or why he was doing it, kissed her on the lips. The kiss lasted about two seconds before Harry felt his face heat up and he pulled away, feeling quite embarrassed. Luna also was blushing.

"Well, it's nice to meet you too, Harry Potter," Luna said in an airy voice that was a little shaken.

"I'm sorry Luna … I don't know what I was doing ..." Harry spluttered, feeling more embarrassed by the second. Luna just shrugged.

"The potion probably sent back a few emotions," she said evenly. "Either that or the Wrackspurts got you!"

"Uh … Wrackspurts, Luna?" Harry asked. Luna tilted her head slightly to the left.

"They're invisible creatures that fly into your head and make your brain go fuzzy," she explained.

"Oh. Okay then. That could be it," Harry said, sounding confused. He didn't know enough about the magical world to know if Wrackspurts were real, but decided to take Luna's word for it. "Why did you lead me out here, Luna?"

"We need to talk of course. Here is the safest place to do so without being overheard," Luna replied serenely before looking at Harry quite seriously. "We need to go and see Professor Dumbledore as soon as we can. Memory-You said that you weren't sure if he could be fully trusted not to wipe our memories, but the potion makes it so that he can't so there's really no risk." Harry was surprised at the quick change in demeanour of the eleven year old.

"Memory-You never said anything like that to me. Mostly you just told me about what to do as soon as I got back and about the years to come," Harry said. "You also went through a list of people we should trust and who we shouldn't. Professor Dumbledore never came up there."

"I got told all about the Horcruxes and what Voldemort did after 1998," Luna said still looking serious. "Do you know about the Horcruxes?"

"Yes, but only a little. I know what some of them are and that we had to destroy them to beat Voldemort. I also know that we didn't get them all," Harry said sadly. "So what do you propose we do about this? Do I just send an owl to Dumbledore?" Luna thought about this for a minute.

"That might take too long," Luna thought again. "Daddy will be away until tomorrow night and I'm staying at the Rook all on my own. I could ask Mrs Weasley if you could come and stay with me. Keep me company."

"That might work," Harry replied thoughtfully. "But how will that help us contact Dumbledore any faster?"

"Daddy is the only journalist that Professor Dumbledore will talk to," Luna replied. "He has a direct Floo connection to Professor Dumbledore's office. We could firecall him and get him to come over."

"Floo? Firecall?" Harry asked. Luna looked at him sadly.

"I forgot you weren't brought up here," she said before losing the serious look and began talking brightly again. "The Floo network is a way we can travel and talk over long distances. It uses fireplaces and Floo powder. It's really quite convenient."

"Okay then," Harry said in wonder of the magical world. Actually, he was thinking how much it sounded like a Muggle telephone. "We'd better get to the Burrow before Mrs Weasley comes looking for us." Harry paused. "Sorry again for kissing you, Luna." Luna smiled brightly and stood on her tiptoes and kissed Harry on the cheek.

"Don't be," Luna said as Harry's face reddened again. "I've never been kissed by a boy before. Well, other than Daddy and that doesn't count. It was nice," Luna commented airily before grabbing Harry's arm and moving towards the Burrow.

Luckily for them, the chickens had gotten harder for Molly to round up so she didn't even notice that Harry had left. When they got to the house, Harry and Luna walked over to Mrs Weasley, arms linked. Harry was a little embarrassed but went along with it.

"Hello Mrs Weasley," Luna said brightly. "Are the chickens being a nuisance?" Mrs Weasley turned around and was about to say something before she noticed the linked arms.

"They are being a bit annoying. I see you two are getting along well," Mrs Weasley commented with a warm smile. Luna smiled back.

"I like Harry. He's very nice," Luna said. "He came and met me just as I was exiting the trees. We talked for a little bit and he was really nice. He even kissed me on the cheek." Luna giggled as Harry blushed, understanding why the girl was lying.

"That's lovely dear," Mrs Weasley said. "Now why don't you run up and let Ginny know you're here? I'd like a word with Harry for a minute," Luna nodded and slipped her arm out of Harry's before turning and skipping into the house.

"What is it Mrs Weasley?" Harry asked before being engulfed in a massive hug by the motherly woman.

"Thank you so much, Harry," Mrs Weasley said. "Luna has never been the same since her mother died. I've sort of taken on that role for her. She doesn't have very many friends and I'm glad you're so nice to her."

"She's really nice," Harry said, trying to force down the blush. "I don't know why anyone wouldn't like her."

"I know, dear. I can't think why Ron treats her like he does," Mrs Weasley sighed. "She's a lovely girl with a big heart."

"Don't worry, Mrs Weasley. I'll be her friend. Even if she gets sorted into Slytherin, I'll still be her friend," Harry said fervently. Mrs Weasley laughed.

"Oh, I don't think Luna has a conniving bone in her body. She's far better suited for Ravenclaw," Mrs Weasley said. Harry thought to himself that he should tell Luna to ask for Gryffindor if she wanted to. "How about you go and find Luna and Ginny and see if they'll let you play with them?" Mrs Weasley asked. Harry nodded and entered the house, leaving Mrs Weasley to try and catch the chickens that seemed to be eluding her. Harry wondered why she wasn't using magic.

* * *

 _ **July, 1998**_

 _It had been two months since the Battle of Hogwarts and Molly Weasley's heart was still broken._

 _The Battle had gone far better than Molly could have hoped, all things considered. The major threats were all taken out, and Voldemort himself was gone from the world. The Death Eaters were still being rounded up, but they were gone for the most part. The Second Wizarding War was over. Yet Molly couldn't find it within herself to move past it._

 _Fred, her boy, was dead and Molly had become a killer._

 _During the Battle, Molly hadn't had time to process everything, and it took some time for the adrenaline to wear off. When it did she broke down more than she had since Fabian and Gideon had been killed in the First War. This time it was different. This time it was Fred. Her son. The son that she had raised ever since she held him in her womb._

 _The whole family were in mourning for a long time, but one by one Molly watched as they each slowly came out of it and became more like their old selves. Arthur went back to tinkering. Bill and Fleur found a house to start their family in. Charlie went back to Romania. Percy became part of the Ministry Relief. Ron spent most of his time with Hermione or Harry or both. Ginny did the same. Soon it was just Molly and George left mourning._

 _Molly felt so utterly incompetent as a mother whenever she saw George sitting alone, staring off into space. She could not remember ever having seen George alone before in her life, and now it was the only way she saw him. And she couldn't come up with anything to say that would make her poor boy any better._

 _Then, one day, Angelina Johnson showed up at the Burrow to see how everyone was doing. Molly knew how close she had been to Fred, and couldn't help but feel a rush of gratitude that she cared enough to come by. She and George spoke for hours that first day. It was three days later and Molly had rarely seen George, as he was always out with Angelina._

 _It wasn't just Fred that haunted Molly. Whenever she closed her eyes, there were two faces that intermittently showed up. Fred was one. The other was the utterly crazed face of Bellatrix Lestrange, the woman Molly had killed during the Battle._

 _Everyone told Molly that she did the right thing. That Lestrange deserved to die. That if she hadn't killed Lestrange, someone else in the family might have died. Ginny might have died. Logically, Molly knew this made sense. Of course it did. Bellatrix Lestrange had done so many despicable things in her lifetime and she would have done worse things had she lived on._

 _But Molly wasn't a killer._

 _Molly didn't want to be a killer, and yet she was. She had knowingly and gladly taken another person's life away from them. She had watched with some glee as the light left the eyes of Bellatrix Lestrange._

 _It sickened her._

 _Two months had passed. Fred still didn't come back to her. Bellatrix Lestrange haunted her dreams. And Molly Weasley didn't know if it would ever stop. Everyone else was getting on with their lives, and Molly was stuck doing endless, repetitive tasks just so that she might have her mind on other things. She never used magic for these tasks. That would be too easy and would just get her thinking about the people she had lost in her life again. Fabian. Gideon. Fred. Everyone else that she had grown to care for. She had to forget, so she kept her hands busy. If they stopped, so would she._

* * *

Luna ran up the stairs to Ginevra's room, preparing to tell her friend about how she met Harry outside. One of the things that Memory-Harry had said to Luna was that they needed to get Ginevra past the obsessive phase so she would actually talk to Harry rather than completely ignore him for three years.

When Luna got to the door to her friend's room she knocked politely and waited for the door to open. She was surprised to find that Ginevra only opened it a crack before sighing in relief and opening the door quickly and hurrying Luna in.

"Sorry about that Luna," Ginevra said, sounding a little rushed. "I thought you might be Harry. Can you believe it? The Boy Who Lived is in _my_ house!"

"Oh, yes. I can believe it," Luna replied. "In fact, I met him outside just as I was coming up to the house."

"You did? And you didn't run away?" Ginevra asked sounding amazed.

"Why would I run away?" Luna asked, genuinely curious as to what Ginevra's answer would be.

"Because it's the Boy Who Lived of course!" Ginevra huffed as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I know _I_ can't say anything in front of him. He's so dreamy." Luna just shrugged which made Ginevra pout.

"He's just Harry," Luna said. Ginevra's eyes flashed towards her.

" _Just_ Harry?" she asked incredulously. "Just Harry? No, no, no, no! This is the Boy Who Lived, Luna."

"No. I'm quite sure he introduced himself as Harry. Not the Boy Who Lived," Luna said quietly. "So he's Harry."

"No. He's the Boy Who Lived. He saved our world," Ginevra said. Luna sighed. "I love him." Luna resisted the urge to shake her head and decided to put on a fake bravado.

"Oh really?" Luna said loudly and brightly, clapping her hands together. "Ooh. Does he love you too?" Ginevra looked awkward didn't say anything. "Well surely you've talked about it!" Again nothing. "You have talked to him?"

"No," Ginevra said quietly. Luna again resisted the urge to shake her head.

"Well how can you love him, then?" Luna asked. Ginevra's face turned a light red.

"I just do! I love him! He saved us from You-Know-Who! I love him!" Ginny said loudly. Luna really shook her head.

"Ginevra. You can't be in a room with him and you don't talk to him. How can you love him?" Luna asked quietly. This seemed to make Ginevra even angrier.

"What would you know, Luna?" Ginevra shouted. "I bet he wouldn't even talk to you! I bet he doesn't even like you!" That made Luna feel irritated.

"I disagree," Luna said.

"And why is that?" Ginevra asked, putting her hands on her hips, much like her mother did when reprimanding Ronald, Fred or George.

"Because he kissed me on the cheek and he took my arm as we walked to the house." Ginevra looked scandalised.

"Get out," she said in a low, angry voice. "Get out! How could you?" Ginevra practically shoved Luna out of the door and slammed it. Luna didn't really feel rejected because she knew that it had to be done. She also knew that both she and Harry would likely want to spend the day together after what had happened. Besides, this gave Luna a reason for not having Ginevra with her at her house.

She found Harry waiting in the living room on his own. She relayed the conversation to him.

"She thinks she's in love with me?" Harry asked incredulously as Luna nodded. "But she hasn't said a single word to me!"

"I know. I think the Wrackspurts have taken to nesting in her head," Luna commented. "It will take quite a bit to knock them loose. That might be where you got yours earlier, come to think of it."

At that very moment, Fred and George exited the kitchen with equally large smirks on their faces. They saw Luna sitting with Harry.

"Hi there, Luna," Fred said cheerfully. "Happy day isn't it?"

"I believe it is, dear brother," George replied. "I hope young Harry and young Luna here get as much out of the day as we have so far." Both twins gave Harry a sideways glance. Luna didn't know what was going on, but she assumed it was something that Harry knew about because he nodded at their glance, with a smile on his face.

"Well, gotta run," Fred said quickly.

"Can't be here soon. Alibis, you see?" George said cryptically before they both disappeared outside, looking as if they were stifling their laughter. Luna turned to Harry.

"What are they so happy about?" she asked, feeling a little self-conscious. Harry smiled at her.

"Just wait a minute," Harry said, putting up a hand. A few seconds later, Luna heard the sound of a plate crashing to the ground and Mrs Weasley screeching.

"Ronald Bilius Weasley!" Luna heard Mrs Weasley shout. "What _IS_ the meaning of this?"

"Meaning of what, Mum?" Luna heard Ronald ask.

"Why in the world are you coloured emerald and silver?" Luna couldn't help but start laughing at the mere thought of Ronald in those colours.

"What do you mean?" Ronald asked, sounding confused.

"Look at yourself!" Mrs Weasley yelled. Then came a second plate crashing to the ground and a rather feminine shriek from Ronald. Ronald then ran through the living room. Luna could just see that Ronald's face was half-emerald and half-silver along with his arms and legs. She laughed as he ran, frightened, through the living room. Harry was doing the same as her. When she finally got herself under control, she turned to Harry.

"I have a feeling you were involved with that," Luna said in amusement. Harry smiled and his emerald green eyes twinkled.

"I was talking to him about you this morning and he called you 'Loony'. I told Fred and George and they're helping me get back at him for the comments." Luna smiled at the thought of being defended.

"Thank you, Harry," Luna said. "Only Daddy has ever stood up for me before." She leaned in and hugged Harry to thank him. She was a little surprised that he flinched before hugging her back. It was during this hug that Mrs Weasley walked in.

"Aww," Mrs Weasley cooed. "Aren't you two cute?" Harry and Luna blushed and pulled apart.

"Mrs Weasley, I would like to ask you something," Luna said.

"Go right ahead dear," Mrs Weasley said, waving her wand towards the mantle above the fireplace.

"I'll be alone tonight because Daddy will be away until tomorrow," Luna said. Mrs Weasley turned.

"You can stay here if you like," she said pleasantly. Luna shook her head.

"I can't Mrs Weasley. I still can't sleep anywhere but in my room," Luna sighed. "I don't know how I'll get on when I get to Hogwarts, but oh well."

"Would you like Ginny to go and stay with you?" Mrs Weasley asked. Luna shook her head sadly.

"I'm afraid Ginevra is rather upset with me at the moment," Luna said sadly. Mrs Weasley's gaze turned into a glare.

"Why?" she asked simply. Luna knew that the glare wasn't directed at her, but was about Ginevra.

"She didn't like that Harry kissed me on the cheek and walked with me to see you," Luna replied. She saw Harry look at her but she didn't acknowledge it. "She says she's in love with him."

"I see," Mrs Weasley said thoughtfully. "I'll have a talk to her soon. But what did you want to ask me, dear?"

"I was thinking Harry could come and stay with me for tonight. I would feel a lot safer with someone there," Luna said. "I don't think Percy or Ronald would want to stay with me. And I'm not sure I would want the twins to." Mrs Weasley pursed her lips in contemplation. Luna knew that they really didn't need Mrs Weasley's approval because Harry was a guest, but it made sense to ask her just to be safe.

"I would feel a whole lot better knowing I was there with her Mrs Weasley. I know what it's like to feel lonely," Harry said. "You remember that I was locked up at the Dursleys. On my own. I know what it's like."

Mrs Weasley looked like she was about to agree.

"What does your father say about this?" She addressed Luna. _Bugger_ , Luna thought.

"He told me that I could invite someone to stay with me," Luna said. She was definitely not lying. And she knew that her father would have no problems with Harry Potter staying with her. Even though he was a boy.

"Are you absolutely certain?" Mrs Weasley asked. Neither Luna nor Harry appeared to know who she was talking to so they both answered.

"Yes," they both said at the same time. Mrs Weasley sighed.

"Okay then. I don't much like the idea of you two being alone together, but I don't think anything will happen, so I will allow it," Mrs Weasley looked at them with a smile. "But I _will_ be contacting Xeno when he gets back."

"That's fine Mrs Weasley," Luna said. "Seeing as how Ginevra isn't really talking to me, would you mind if I take Harry to show him my house?"

"That's fine Luna. It'll give me a chance to talk to Ginny. Just be back for lunch. That's in three hours." The two children nodded and quickly headed out of the house and headed for the Rook.

"So, we'll be talking to Dumbledore now I take it?" Harry asked. Luna nodded.

"We've got three hours which gives us enough time to view both memories with him. That way we can also see each other's." Luna smiled at Harry, taking his hand and rushing forward, pulling Harry with her.

As they approached the large, black, cylindrical house, Harry commented that he could see why it was called the Rook. Luna had seen the same kind of look on the faces of some other people who had visited her home before.

When they entered the house, Luna took Harry on a quick tour. When they reached her room, she showed Harry the picture of her and her mother, Pandora that she kept next to her bed at all times because it helped during particularly bad nights to look at it. It was a sort of calming influence. She also showed Harry the room he would be sleeping in. It was the only spare bedroom in the house and it wasn't used very much. Luna's father kept it well-maintained though.

When they were finished the tour, Luna took Harry back downstairs and moved straight to the fireplace, scooping up some Floo powder as she went. She knelt down where she knew was most comfortable and threw the Floo powder in and shouted, "Albus Dumbledore!"


	4. Harry's Memory

**_Disclaimer:_** _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

—CHAPTER THREE—

 _Harry's Memory_

Harry watched as Luna knelt down and yelled the Headmaster's name into the roaring fire. He had absolutely no idea what was going on, but he figured this was how the Floo network worked. Of course, he did feel a bit concerned seeing Luna's face that close to the flames. In fact, part of him wanted to pull her away from the flames as quickly as he possibly could, but he knew Luna would know what she was doing and stopped himself. It was surprisingly difficult to do so.

If he was shocked to see Luna do what she had done, he was even more shocked to see the old Headmaster's face appear in the flames a minute later with a smile on his face.

"Ah, Miss Lovegood!" Dumbledore said happily. "To what do I owe this great pleasure?"

"I am very sorry, sir, but this is rather urgent," Luna said. "I have something that I need to tell you. Harry Potter is with me and also needs to tell you something."

Harry could see Dumbledore's eyebrows twitch even in the flames.

"May I ask what it concerns?" he asked.

"It has quite a bit to do with You-Know-Who," Luna said quickly. Dumbledore didn't betray anything on his face.

"Well you may just be in luck then," Dumbledore said with a smile. "As it happens, I have been pacing around for about an hour with nothing to do, which is very rare given all of my many professions. It seems that I have some time free today. Would it be convenient to come over now?"

"If you don't mind, sir," Luna replied. "Daddy is away so it's just me and Harry."

"I'll come through right away," Dumbledore replied with a nod.

Luna stood up and Harry watched as the flames lowered. He looked to Luna, about to ask something but as he opened his mouth, the fireplace sprang back to life with green flames. Dumbledore walked out of the flames, unharmed. The Headmaster of Hogwarts drew his wand and cleaned off his robes before looking to Harry.

"Harry, m'boy," he said jovially. "I trust you are enjoying the hospitality of the Weasleys?"

"I am, sir," Harry replied. "But I'm staying with Luna tonight. I don't want her to be on her own."

"Of course," Dumbledore smiled. "That is very noble of you Harry," Dumbledore turned to Luna. "Now, what was it you wished to tell me, Miss Lovegood?"

Luna looked towards Harry. Harry nodded so Luna began to talk.

"Harry and I have come across some knowledge about You-Know-Who that we thought you should know," she said carefully.

"Exactly how did you come into this knowledge?" Dumbledore asked kindly, but firmly. Harry decided to answer him.

"Have you ever heard of the potion known as 'In Remembrance'?" Harry asked the old man. Dumbledore looked a little confused for a few seconds before comprehension dawned on his face and his mouth formed a small 'o'.

"I … have heard of it," Dumbledore said a little shakily. "However did you hear of such a thing?"

"We didn't hear of it," Luna said serenely. "We used it."

"You _used_ it?" Dumbledore asked worriedly. It was strange for Harry to see the Headmaster in such a state. He looked almost frantic. "Why would you ever do such a thing? That is one of the darkest potions known to man. It has only ever been used once before."

"We used it because there was no other choice," Luna replied sadly before moving away from the topic. "When we used it, we used the sixty minutes of memories to be sent back as a monologue. Harry spoke to me and I spoke to Harry. From what Harry told me in my memory, he defeated Voldemort in 1998," Harry saw Dumbledore sigh in relief. "And for nineteen years the Wizarding World was peaceful. But then Voldemort came back and was stronger than before. By the end of 2033 there were only four magical inhabitants of Britain left. Harry and I were two of them."

While Memory-Luna had never gone through this explicitly with him, Harry had gathered something similar to this had happened. It was all that he could think of to rationalise using such a dark potion.

"If I may," Dumbledore said seriously. He looked to be a little put out from what Luna had said. "I think I may have a simpler solution than telling me."

"The Pensieve?" Harry asked. "We were going to suggest that ourselves."

"You know about my Pensieve?" Dumbledore asked sounding surprised. Harry shrugged.

"I got told about the things that happened from now until Voldemort was destroyed and the Pensieve was a large part of that," Harry replied. Dumbledore nodded and within a second a beautiful crimson bird with golden tail feathers appeared with a flash next to Dumbledore with a large round dish in its talons. Dumbledore took the dish and ruffled the bird's feathers.

"This is Fawkes," Dumbledore said proudly. Harry's eyes widened as he realised that this was the bird that had helped him defeat a basilisk at the end of his Second Year. "He is a Phoenix and a very good friend of mine." Dumbledore turned to Fawkes. "You may go back now." The bird trilled, which made Harry feel strangely calm, before flashing away again, out of the room and the house.

"Is that the Pensieve?" Luna asked, looking at the dish with awe.

"Indeed it is," Dumbledore confirmed. "I would explain it, but it seems that you already know what it does." Dumbledore smiled, but it seemed not to reach his eyes. "Shall we get started?"

"Actually, sir. There was just one thing," Harry said quickly.

"What's that, Harry?" Dumbledore asked kindly.

"In my memories I remember Sirius Black," Dumbledore's blue eyes hardened. "In my Third Year, he apparently escaped from Azkaban. But I found out later that year that it was actually Peter Pettigrew who betrayed my parents."

"Peter Pettigrew?" Dumbledore asked incredulously.

"Yes. It appears that my parents changed Secret Keeper without anyone knowing," Harry replied. "Pettigrew betrayed them to Voldemort so Sirius went after him."

"And Sirius killed Pettigrew and those thirteen Muggles," Dumbledore said sadly but his face turned to shock as Harry shook his head.

"No. Pettigrew killed the Muggles, cut off his finger and turned into his Animagus form, a rat, before fleeing. Sirius was filled with grief and blamed himself for my parents' death. That was why he was found laughing in the street," Harry explained with some sadness in his voice.

"So, Barty sent an innocent man to Azkaban?" Dumbledore asked with a sigh, talking mainly to himself. "But why are you bringing this up now?"

"Pettigrew is living with the Weasleys," Harry said shortly. "The rat that Percy took to school, the rat that Ron has now, is Pettigrew. If we get him, could we get Sirius let off?" Harry knew that it sounded childish, but he wanted to get to know Sirius and perhaps even live with him. Dumbledore stroked his beard.

"If we could get Pettigrew, I believe that I could get Sirius out of Azkaban," he replied. "We would just take the man to Amelia Bones and she can administer Veritaserum, a truth potion, to verify what you say, though I have no doubt that it is true."

"I was thinking that I could get the rat now," Harry said. "You two could go into the Pensieve and watch my memory while I sneak off and get Pettigrew."

"How do you plan on stealing Ronald's rat without him knowing?" Luna asked. Harry reached into the deep pocket of Dudley's old pants and pulled out the Invisibility Cloak.

"I thought I might need it," Harry said with a smile as Dumbledore nodded and smiled as well.

"You will need something to hold him," Dumbledore said thoughtfully. "Something that won't allow him change back into his human form."

"I think Daddy has something," Luna said quickly and stood up, going into a different room. She was back out within a minute, carrying a glass jar. "Daddy has an unbreakable charm on this jar so that the Follygrubles don't get out if he drops it. It should work for a rat."

"Yes. I think that will do nicely," Dumbledore said. "So, Harry. You will go and grab Pettigrew, put him in this jar and return back here?"

"Yes sir," Harry said.

"May I ask why you don't just tell Mr Weasley the truth?" Dumbledore asked inquisitively.

"It's in my memory," Harry said shortly. "How do I do this?" Harry asked, pointing to his head. Dumbledore withdrew the Elder Wand and placed it at Harry's temple.

"Think very hard about the memory and I will extract it from your mind," Dumbledore said kindly. Harry focused on the hour long memory and felt Dumbledore remove his wand. There was a strange, not entirely unpleasant, feeling as he looked over to see a silvery thread dangling from the end of Dumbledore's wand. He flicked the wand towards the pensieve and the silver memory floated down into the bowl.

"Should I still be able to remember it?" Harry asked, sounding a little concerned.

"No. You should not," Dumbledore said sounding interested. "If I had to, I would quess that the potion you used made it so that you could never, under any circumstances, forget such important information. It would not do for someone to use such a dangerous and rare potion only to then forget, or be forced to forget, it all. Ingenious."

"What do I have to do?" Luna asked Dumbledore.

"Just put your finger into the liquid and you will 'drop into', so to speak, the memory," Dumbledore replied. Luna nodded and did as she was told. When she got sucked into the bowl, Harry had the sudden urge to grab her and pull her out, but it was too late. Dumbledore turned to him. "Good luck, Harry." He placed his own finger into the liquid as well, being whisked away into the Pensieve leaving Harry in the house by himself.

Harry waited just a moment before pulling on the Invisibility Cloak while clutching the unbreakable jar that Luna had gotten for him. As he exited the house, he found that he was very much looking forward to catching Pettigrew and getting justice for his parents and Sirius. When thinking about Sirius, he thought he felt something like respect and admiration, but he wasn't quite sure if that was what it actually was. He recalled his memory and how it said that Sirius had died.

As a result, he truly hoped that his capture of Pettigrew would help to get Sirius free, primarily for two reasons. The first being that he might actually be able to leave the Dursley household for good. The second reason was that he might be able to prevent Sirius dying this time around. While the thought of never having to see the Dursley family again excited him beyond belief, it was actually the potential for Sirius' life to change completely that made him happiest.

Harry headed quickly in the direction of the tree line which separated the Rook and the Burrow. As he reached the other side, he saw that Mrs Weasley, Ginny and Ron, who was still emerald and silver, only slightly faded since he had last seen him, doing something to some plants. Ron and Ginny didn't look particularly happy, but it appeared that Mrs Weasley was forcing them to work. Harry was pleased that they were all outside as it would make his plan much easier to pull off.

Harry made his way as quickly as he could into the Burrow, trying to make as little noise as possible as he ascended the stairs to Ron's bedroom at the very top. A few times a stair would creak under his foot, and once Percy stuck his head out of his door to reprimand whoever it might have been, but found no one. The moment that Percy closed the door, Harry hurried onwards, running as quickly as possible past the twins' room.

When he finally reached Ron's room and opened the door, his eyes actually had to adjust to the shocking orange colour radiating within. It was hardly a flattering colour and Harry wasn't entirely sure that he was fond of it overall, but Ron was a fan of the Chudley Cannons, and a loyal fan at that. When he could finally see colours other than orange he took off the Cloak and found the rat asleep on Ron's bed. Harry undid the lid on the jar before picking up the traitor roughly and shoving him inside of it and screwing the lid on.

Inside the jar, Pettigrew was completely frantic as he pushed against the glass in an attempt to force his way out. When he discovered that he was not getting out that way, he started scratching at the lid desperately. When he finally calmed down, Harry turned the jar so that he could look the rat in the eyes, and he grinned evilly.

"Don't worry, Peter," Harry whispered into the glass. "You'll get what you deserve soon." He made sure that the lid was tight before throwing the Invisibility Cloak back over himself and making his way back downstairs. He had to avoid Percy again, who was looking even angrier than before but he soon found himself back outside the house.

He looked over to where Mrs Weasley was talking to Ginny while Ron was nowhere to be seen. Ginny appeared to be crying as Mrs Weasley talked to her, presumably about himself and Luna. Harry then had a terrible thought. What if Ginny went to the Rook to apologise while Luna was in the Pensieve with Dumbledore? He could only hope that Ginny was stubborn enough to wait a few hours.

He swiftly moved to the trees and towards the Rook, completely unaware that Ron had seen his footprints appear in the grass as he walked.

* * *

 _ **October, 2023**_

 _Hermione Weasley was seated in her favourite chair in her home library, reading a Muggle novel from the late 1970's. She seemed to have been going through her collection of books a lot faster than usual as she and her husband Ron had gone into hiding with their son Hugo, now nearing sixteen years old, in July of the previous year, as it had become increasingly obvious that Voldemort was far stronger than he had been in the last war. Fidelius charms were one of the remaining things that Voldemort could still not crack, and so most people chose to live in a home covered with one._

 _When she went to Ron and discussed the idea of going into hiding under the Fidelius, she immediately suggested that Harry should be their Secret Keeper. She had thought that this was the best suggestion given how close they had been, and still were, with Harry and also because Harry would never in a million years sell them out to Voldemort. It was more than a little surprising when Ron said no immediately and suggested several other people to be the Secret Keeper including most of his own family._

 _This decision perplexed Hermione, and she told him so. This only served to make him want to use someone other than Harry even more. It seemed as though he wanted anyone else to be their Secret Keeper other than Harry. When she asked why, Ron snapped back at her, saying that they always go to Harry when they needed help, and that he was completely sick of it. He hated that Harry had to continue to bail them out of everything._

 _Listening to Ron saying this, Hermione had been taken aback at the tone with which he was speaking. Harry was her best friend and until then she had thought he was Ron's best friend as well. She didn't understand why Ron wasn't her best friend, as she had believed spouses were meant to be best friends. The reason had eluded her, but she did love Ron. Even though she thought that Harry was far and away their best choice, she decided to let Ron have his way and they decided on Seamus Finnigan, as he was the least likely of Ron's choices that Voldemort would look for should he want to find them. Seamus and Lavender had already gone into hiding at that point, so they were already safe enough that they were unlikely to be found in order to actually give away the Secret that Seamus was tasked to protect._

 _So, for over a year she and Ron had stayed inside their magically expanded house, with Hermione reading and Ron slowly getting more and more unbearable. If Hermione didn't let him watch his old Quidditch tapes, which were made in the early 2000's, he would have been a lot harder to live with. The only people that knew where they lived were Seamus, Lavender, Harry, Ginny, Luna, Rolf and the rest of the Weasleys. Because everyone was living under the Fidelius charm, visits between them all were frequent and, as a result, Hermione grew much closer with everyone. That, at the very least, was something that she enjoyed._

 _It was while she was reading that she felt the wards tell her that someone was at the door. Despite how safe she was, Hermione immediately snatched up her wand, made sure that her book was left in the correct spot and moved to answer the door. She felt something akin to disgust when she saw her husband, who was becoming quite overweight, not even move to open the front door himself, or grab his wand for that matter. Ron was on the couch watching an old tape with Hugo, who did have the good sense to have his wand out._

 _Hugo stood up and approached the door behind his mother. He had been forbidden to open the door for himself, but he was allowed to help if anything happened._ Thank God he has some sense at least, _Hermione thought with a sigh. The person outside knocked loudly._

" _I'm coming," Hermione said impatiently. When she finally grasped the door handle, she felt a strange tingle go down her spine that made her remove her hand for a second before dismissing it and opening the door._

 _Hermione screamed as she looked into the red, slit-like eyes of Lord Voldemort. She was then promptly silenced with a stunner._

* * *

Luna was inside the Pensieve with Albus Dumbledore and was listening intently as the older her went through what had occurred over the course of the seven years after Harry was introduced to magic by Hagrid. To say that she was surprised at the sheer amount that Harry had to go through was an understatement. Luna was usually mild-mannered to a fault but she found herself thinking vehemently that she was going to protect Harry from having to go through any of that again no matter what.

It had been about forty-five minutes when Memory-Luna finished talking about what had happened in those years. It was then that she told Harry directly what to do when Dobby showed up and to make sure that he got hold of the diary in time. Professor Dumbledore stopped the memory with a flick of his want and turned to Luna.

"Did Harry get a hold of the Diary?" he asked. Luna shrugged.

"He hasn't said anything about it to me," she said in a serious tone that she thought really didn't suit her. "But I imagine that he did."

"I see," Professor Dumbledore replied worriedly. "I, for one, am interested to know why he couldn't just tell Mr Weasley about Peter Pettigrew. He did say that it was here."

Luna already knew why Harry didn't trust Ron as much because she was told what happened after 1998. She didn't blame him in the slightest. Professor Dumbledore restarted the memory again as Memory-Luna began to talk again. The memory had about another ten minutes to go.

" _This next portion is going to be quite difficult to accept, Harry,_ " Memory-Luna began. " _I am going to tell you who you can and cannot trust in the magical world_.

" _But first I would like to tell you to make friends with Colin Creevey, who I mentioned earlier. Dennis, his younger brother, was one of the last four with us and he told us before he died that Colin was never really a 'fan' of The Boy Who Lived, like most people believed, but he just wanted a friend. Being a Muggle-born was tough on Colin, he never made any good friends in the magical world and mostly hung around with Dennis who was two years younger than him. Please, make friends with Colin. It was Dennis' last wish that you do so._ " Luna felt really bad for this Colin boy and knew precisely what she was going to do.

" _The remaining member of the final four was Draco Malfoy_." If Professor Dumbledore was surprised, he didn't show it. " _After the war, Draco changed. You saved him from being put through the Veil, and Draco came to realise that his views on magic and blood purity were wrong. Earlier today, Draco left to give Voldemort a message and we are certain he won't return. He told us to talk to him in your time. He said he should come around eventually. Harry, when he tried to shake your hand, he was prepared to drop his family. When you refused, he turned into what he became. Give him a chance_." There was a look of pride on Dumbledore's face.

" _This will be another thing that will be difficult for you to accept. Ronald Weasley cannot be trusted as much as you trust him now_ ," Memory-Luna said seriously. This time, Professor Dumbledore did seem to betray some surprise. " _Don't alienate him, because he can still be a good friend, but don't trust him implicitly. He can be very jealous and possessive, and that often ends up being a bad thing. His sense of pride often overrides his brain. As I have already said, he abandoned you twice before the end of the war and both times were when something dangerous was happening to you. You needed him, and he wasn't there. Ronald Weasley can be your friend, but you need to understand that you cannot trust him implicitly._

" _On the other hand, you need to trust Hermione Granger. She never once abandoned you over the course of your schooling or during the Horcrux hunt. That is precisely why she was sorted into Gryffindor and not Ravenclaw. Harry, you were her best friend in this timeline and you should continue to be friends with her in yours. She won't like me to begin with, but help her to like me. I could be a little strange back then. I still can be._

" _Neville Longbottom is the single most loyal person that we have ever had the pleasure of knowing. But at the time you will receive this memory, he is plagued by self-doubt. You need to help him through this and allow him to become the person that we knew. Also, convince his Gran to get him a wand of his own. He's using his father's wand and it doesn't work well for him. He can be so much better than he is if you help him._

" _The rest of the Weasley family, with the exception of Percy, can be trusted more so than Ron can. That family helped you more than anyone else, Harry. They will all grow to love you like a son and a brother and you should let them. If you can, along the way try to stop Percy turning on them like he did. It destroyed Molly when it happened, even if they did get things resolved in the end._

" _The Triwizard Champions, Cedric, Fleur and Viktor all can be trusted. Just because Viktor was taught at Durmstrang and learned the Dark Arts does not mean that he is evil. In fact, his knowledge saved me twice before we fled to Hogwarts. Don't hold Fleur's heritage against her. Please, don't let Cedric die. He deserved better. Far better._

" _Remus Lupin and Sirius Black can both be fully trusted, even so far as implicitly trusting them. They love you like a son. Remus would have taken you when your parents died, but he was a Werewolf so it was not possible. When Sirius is released from Azkaban, you should go and live with him, even if Dumbledore says no. He is your godfather and loves you. But for that to happen you need to catch the rat._

" _There are three Aurors that you should trust. Alastor Moody, Kingsley Shacklebolt and Nymphadora Tonks. Mad-Eye and Tonks died during the war, and Kingsley was Minister afterwards. They will all help you and your cause._

" _There are three others in your year that can be trusted as well. Ernie Macmillan is great when he gets past the pompousness, Hannah Abbott will be loyal to the end and Susan Bones will do the same. This isn't to say that everyone else isn't trustworthy, but these are three that we were close to after the war. Treat them well._

" _Almost all of the teachers at Hogwarts can be trusted, Poppy Pomfrey included._ " Luna saw Professor Dumbledore smile. _"All that could, fought for the school in 1997 and 1998 and they all helped where they could after 2017. Minerva McGonagall is far and above the most trustworthy._

" _That leads to Severus Snape._ " Luna saw that Dumbledore had a cheerful look on his face. " _Despite how he might be towards you, he can be trusted. I have already explained why, but it is important that you trust him as a spy. His role in the war is completely vital. Without him, Voldemort would have won earlier than he did._

" _That leads me to my final point. Albus Dumbledore. We have discussed this long and hard, along with a lot of our friends over the years. Even now we cannot say with absolute certainty that Albus was not being a manipulative old goat through the entirety of your school years._ " The man in question rubbed his bearded chin in thought. Luna wondered what was going through his mind. " _We have decided that it is in your best interest to show him this memory in a Pensieve. The worst that he can do is try to Obliviate you and the potion won't let him do that._ "

Memory-Luna looked away from Memory-Harry slightly.

" _If you are here Albus, it is imperative that you work_ with _Harry and Luna and not against them. Once you have seen both memories, you will have everything you need to fix the world and get rid of Voldemort. We don't know what your ultimate goal would have been had your arm not gotten destroyed. You likely would have still sent Harry to his death but, for all we know, you may have used that publicity to claim your 'rightful place' as Wizarding Britain's leader. We simply don't know. We are trusting you to do what is right and not what is easy. The choice is not always clear, Albus, but in this case it is. Work with Harry and Luna. Help them destroy the Horcruxes. Help them destroy Voldemort. But most of all, let them be children as much, and as often, as possible. I hope you do the right thing, Albus, otherwise the worst will happen again and Tom Riddle will destroy the world. A world you claim you want to protect._ " Professor Dumbledore had a strangely pensive look on his face and was stroking his beard. Before Memory-Luna started to talk again, he stopped the memory and turned to Luna.

"I will work with you. This has all been too important for me to do anything other than work with you." Luna could tell that Professor Dumbledore was being sincere. "And, for the record, I would not have Obliviated either of you, and I have never done so to anyone else unless it was completely required to keep Magic from getting out to the Muggles."

"I believe you, sir," Luna replied with a nod. "I think we are almost done so let's continue." Dumbledore waved the Elder Wand and the memory started again.

" _Harry, I only have one last request,_ " Memory-Luna said. " _When you get on the train to Hogwarts for your second year, please seek out Colin Creevey. He will likely be on his own and please be nice to him. He deserves it._

" _Oh, also, make sure to use the Room of Requirement to its full extent. It has been rather helpful these last few years_." Memory-Luna and Memory-Harry looked around and sighed.

" _I have nothing left to say,_ " Memory-Luna said with a happy smile. " _Everything else will be in Luna's memory of you, Harry. Good Luck, and I hope you change the world for the better._ " With those last words, the memory faded away and Luna and Professor Dumbledore were forcibly removed from the Pensieve.

When they exited the Pensieve they found Harry sitting in a chair, glaring at a rat in a glass. Luna smiled.

"I hope it wasn't too difficult, Harry," she said serenely, smiling at Harry.

"Not at all," Harry replied, setting the jar on the table nearby him, before Professor Dumbledore picked it up and began to study the rat.

"He does indeed have one toe missing," Professor Dumbledore confirmed before setting the jar back down and turning to Harry. "Harry, would you like me to go to the Ministry with him now, or wait until after you have viewed Luna's memory?" Harry looked very torn.

"I think we should go to the Ministry first," Harry finally said. "I can't stand to think of Sirius in that place longer than he has to be. We have about an hour and a half before Mrs Weasley wants us back for lunch. I hope this won't take too long."

"I am sure it will not, Harry," Professor Dumbledore said kindly. "Madam Bones is wonderfully efficient. We may only be there five minutes before we get kicked out so that she can work on releasing Sirius. But we will have to go back to Hogwarts so that we can Floo straight to her. My office is one of the very few direct links that she allows."

"I'm sorry, sir," Harry interrupted. "But I don't know how to use the Floo."

"That's alright, Harry. I'll teach you," Luna said happily. "What is the address, sir?"

"Hogwarts Headmaster's Office," Professor Dumbledore replied with a smile. Luna nodded, grabbed Harry's arm and pulled him towards the fireplace eagerly.

"Okay, Harry," Luna said happily, scooping up some Floo powder. "This is Floo powder. You just throw it in like this." She tossed some into the fireplace, creating green flames. "All you have to do is stand in the flames and shout the name of your destination." Seeing Harry's eyes bug out, Luna quickly said, "It doesn't hurt, don't worry." Harry calmed down, so Luna continued. "Make sure you say the name correctly or you may end up somewhere else entirely to where you needed to be. Also, keep your arms tucked in. Towards the end, it will slow down and then you just walk forward and you will exit properly. Okay?"

"Alright," Harry replied, sounding unsure. Luna noticed Professor Dumbledore smiling at them.

"I'll go first so you can watch me," Luna said, walking into the flames. She heard Harry gasp but he didn't move. "Hogwarts Headmaster's Office!" Luna cried as the flames engulfed her. Within seconds she slowed down and walked out of the fireplace and into the large room.

She had never been to visit Hogwarts with her father before. The room was strangely round and filled with books and shiny silver objects. Next to the large, ornate chair was a large golden perch which Fawkes proudly sat on, gazing upon the new arrival. The walls not covered with bookshelves were covered with portraits, all of whom seemed to be sleeping.

Before Luna had the chance to move out of the way, the fireplace flared up and Harry came stumbling out. He had apparently not stepped out correctly and had a hard time staying upright. Luna watched as he fell forward, taking her down to the floor with him. They hit the ground with a thud and she tried to get up immediately, but found it too difficult under Harry's weight. She looked up and saw Harry's face right above her, blushing furiously as he swiftly moved off of her. His blush was even visible through the soot.

When he was standing, Harry awkwardly held out a hand to help Luna up. Luna took it and was soon on her feet. Wordlessly, they both moved out of the way of the fireplace just in time for Dumbledore to walk out with no problems whatsoever, carrying the rat in his hand. When he saw Harry blushing furiously he looked, to Luna, like he was stifling a laugh.

"Don't bother cleaning yourselves," Dumbledore said with a smile. "We will just go straight to Amelia's office. The address is 'Head of the DMLE's Office'." Luna nodded in time with Harry, whose blush was only then starting to fade. "I think it would be wise for me to head through first. Amelia can be quite the character if startled." Dumbledore then laughed. He then proceeded to scoop some Floo Powder into his hand, throw it into the fireplace and Floo to the office.

"I think you should go first this time, Harry," Luna said serenely, with a smile. Harry began to blush again. "I promise I won't fall on you."

"I'm sure you won't," Harry said quickly as he walked forward and grabbed some Floo Powder. Luna noticed that he still wasn't overly confident, but he walked forward and did what he had to and soon disappeared. Luna then did the same and felt a little sad leaving the only part of Hogwarts she had ever seen behind.

* * *

Harry was able to at least catch himself as he exited the fireplace this time, though he still didn't classify what he did as walking. Stumbling would be more accurate. As he regained his bearings, he looked around the office of Amelia Bones. It was definitely smaller than Dumbledore's office but it was much more colourful. There seemed to be drawings done by someone around the room. There was also a faint tinge of pink to the walls. Plus it didn't have rock everywhere so that made it a sight nicer, Harry thought.

When he finished gazing around the room, he saw a woman sitting behind a desk, talking to Dumbledore, who Harry presumed was Amelia Bones. She had grey-streaked hair, though she looked no older than forty, she had on dark blue robes and had a monocle, which Harry would have found amusing had she not looked as angry as she did.

"Don't be absurd, Albus," she said angrily, standing abruptly. Her outburst made Harry jump and the fireplace flaring up again just as she yelled didn't help matters. Harry turned to watch Luna walk out of the fireplace gracefully. Harry couldn't help but blush again as he thought of how he had exited the fireplace the first time. "You can't expect me to believe that Sirius Black is innocent and that a _rat_ proves it?" Madam Bones had calmed a bit but not much. "I'm sorry, Albus, but the mere idea of _Peter Pettigrew_ , of all people, being an Animagus is an absurd one. And that's putting it lightly. He might not have failed his classes at Hogwarts, but he's nowhere near good enough to learn how to be an Animagus."

"I'm very sorry to interrupt, Amelia, but my guests have arrived." Dumbledore turned and beckoned Harry and Luna to go to him. Madam Bones then put on a smile and left her desk. "Amelia, this is Luna Lovegood." Amelia left her desk and extended her hand, which Luna readily took. "And this is Harry Potter." Harry saw Madam Bones' eyes widen slightly but she caught herself and shook his hand.

"It is a pleasure to meet both of you," Madam Bones said.

"You too, Madam Bones," Luna said. Madam Bones then put up a hand.

"Please address me as Amelia. Harry, I knew your parents well and I miss them. I would have taken you in, but I had enough with my job and taking care of Susan." Harry then realised that Amelia was related to Susan and wanted to hit himself in the head. "And Luna, your father and I are on good terms. I don't want either of you to fall into the traps of formality. Oh, how I miss the name 'Amelia' these days."

"Okay, Amelia," Luna and Harry chorused together. Amelia smiled and turned again to Dumbledore, losing her smile.

"Before you berate me again, Amelia, perhaps we can save some time and you could perform the spell to check it I am correct?" Dumbledore said. Amelia nodded curtly and unscrewed the lid of the jar which held the rat. She reached in and roughly pulled the rat out, pointed her wand at it and, without speaking, she cast a spell which made the rat quickly revert into a man. A very fat, short and balding man, Harry thought. Peter Pettigrew looked around fearfully and his gaze finally landed on Albus. Meanwhile, Amelia looked lost for words.

"Albus. Please. I only just got away. It was terrible. Black wanted to finish the job. He killed the Muggles. He tried to kill me. But I got away," Pettigrew said quickly, his voice quivering in fear.

"I doubt that," Dumbledore replied. He was about to say something, but Pettigrew turned to Harry.

"Harry. Your parents loved me like a brother. Surely you wouldn't let anything happen to me. I could be your uncle. You could live with me." The traitor was sounding more and more pitiful.

"You have the nerve to tell me what my parents would want?" Harry nearly shouted. "You think you have the right to offer me something like that after you caused all of this? You ratted my parents out!"

"I didn't mean to!" Pettigrew pleaded, as he tried to grab hold of Harry's shirt. Harry hit the hand away.

"Didn't mean to?" Harry shouted in a voice that shocked even him. "What _did_ you mean to do? Make them a sandwich?" Pettigrew cowered away from Harry. It was then that Harry noticed a wind in the room. He still focused his eyes on the great lump that was quivering in front of him. As he did, he felt his rage increase and the wind grow stronger.

He felt something on his hand, he looked down to see Luna holding his hand.

"Calm down, Harry," she said sweetly. "If you don't you might kill him accidentally." Harry didn't quite understand what she was talking about but the feeling of her hand calmed him down enough and the wind stopped. Pettigrew then turned to Luna.

"Sweet girl. You saved me. Surely _you_ won't let them do anything?" He was about to say something more but the wind started again and Harry felt his magic rush towards the lump. When it hit him, Pettigrew went flying backwards into the wall of the room, screaming all the while. He hit with a thud and landed on the ground, whimpering.

"I've seen enough," Amelia suddenly said, going into a drawer of her desk and pulling out a vial. Harry couldn't quite see what was in it, but he saw her pull Pettigrew roughly to his feet, sit him in a chair conjured by Dumbledore, bind his hands, open his mouth and pour the liquid down his throat. Immediately, Pettigrew's eyes became distant and cloudy. "What is your full name?"

"Peter Petrov Pettigrew," the rat answered immediately.

"Were you the Secret Keeper for James and Lily Potter?"

"Yes," he responded, struggling to be released.

"Did you tell Lord Voldemort the whereabouts of the Potters?"

"Yes."

"When did you do so?"

"On the fourteenth of October in 1981."

"Were you a Death Eater?"

"Yes."

"For how long before the thirty-first of October, 1981?"

"Nine months, eleven days."

"Did you kill Muggles during a confrontation with Sirius Black?"

"Yes. With a blasting curse."

"Did you cut off your own finger and turn into your rat Animagus form to get away?"

"Yes."

"Did Sirius Black do anything illegal than night?"

"Not to my knowledge."

"I think that's enough," Amelia said, turning to Dumbledore. "Do you have any questions?"

"Just a few," Dumbledore replied before turning to Pettigrew. "Did you tell Voldemort all of the names of the members of the Order of the Phoenix?"

"Yes."

"Did that bring about the deaths of Edgar Bones and his family?" Harry saw Amelia wince slightly at the mention of her family.

"Yes."

"And the McKinnons?"

"Yes."

"And the Prewetts?"

"Yes."

"Why did you stay with the Weasleys for so long?"

"I figured that the Dark Lord would come back and would reward me for giving him information on a light side family. The Weasleys were the best bet because they were the most likely to keep a rat as a pet, given their financial status." Harry actually growled at that.

"Now I am done, Amelia," Dumbledore said sadly. "Give him the antidote." Amelia pulled out another vial from her desk and poured it down Pettigrew's throat. He immediately passed out. Amelia turned to Harry.

"I feel that I must apologise on behalf of the Ministry for the imprisonment of your godfather. I will see to it that this man," she pointed disdainfully at Pettigrew, "receives the Dementor's Kiss for everything that he has done. He not only caused the death of your family, but also the deaths of several others, including my own family."

"If you don't mind me saying, Amelia," Harry said politely, "I don't think he deserves the Dementor's Kiss. I can't imagine ever thinking anyone deserved that. A life sentence in Azkaban, like Sirius is serving right now, should do nicely." Amelia appeared taken aback but nodded. Dumbledore, Harry noticed, was smiling.

"I will see to it immediately, Harry," Amelia said. "I have enough evidence to throw him in there right now, but I fear that it may have to go to a trial. Especially so with Sirius Black having been thrown into Azkaban without one. I will contact the Minister as soon as I have the Aurors take this scum away to a holding cell." She then turned to Dumbledore. "I have to ask you all to leave now. I will contact you as soon as I have any information on what will happen."

"Excellent!" Dumbledore said, the twinkle in his eyes clear to see. "But I have only one request. Give Rita Skeeter the scoop. She can be rather informative when she wants to be."

* * *

 _ **September 1st, 2017**_

 _Rita Skeeter was experiencing déjà vu._

 _In 1995, Harry Potter and Albus Dumbledore had told the entire Wizarding community that You-Know-Who had returned, and for the longest time Rita had not believed them, and she came to regret that._

 _Rita couldn't stop staring up at the Dark Mark, etched into the sky above the wreck that once was the Hogwarts Express._

 _It was very likely that every child on the train was dead. A whole generation wiped out in the name of the Death Eaters. For so long, Rita and the rest of the world had believed the worst was over, but this was the greatest tragedy to befall Magical Britain in history._

 _Rita had a Quick Quotes Quill stationed next to her head as she spoke, describing the scene in front of her. She was the only journalist willing to cover the story, so she had to do it quickly. Yet she couldn't stop staring at the Dark Mark._

 _As she moved about the rubble, she came across some Healers extracting a body from the wreckage. Rita looked at it and immediately looked away. She couldn't decide if it was disgust, fear, pity or respect that made her look away, but she couldn't watch, so she moved on, speaking aloud for her Quill to hear._

 _Finally, when Rita was finished looking over the wreckage, she took out her camera. At first she pointed it to the wreckage itself, but when she spotted a body in the picture, buried under metal, she changed her mind and looked skywards once again and took one sole picture of the Dark Mark hanging ominously in the sky and then Apparated away._

 _Within hours her piece was printed on a special edition of_ The Daily Prophet _._

 _ **HORROR ON THE HOGWARTS EXPRESS**_

By **Rita Skeeter**

Today, we mourn.

I have no doubt that every person in our small, tight-knit community already knows of what has transpired today. If there is anyone who does not know, I would be shocked.

Today, an entire generation was destroyed.

September 1st is ritually a day of excitement and celebration as our youth head to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for their renewed year of schoolwork, whether returning for their Seventh Year or nervously heading for their First. This ritual was destroyed by someone doing the work of the long thought dead group known as the Death Eaters.

The Hogwarts Express was attacked today not long into the journey. It was completely destroyed and now lies in ruins on the tracks. There are, as of now, no reports of any survivors among those aboard the train, though Healers from around Britain are banding together to help find the bodies of the children tragically, and maliciously, killed.

There was no warning before this attack, nor has anyone stepped up to claim responsibility. The only evidence being the Dark Mark, the symbol used by Death Eaters years ago. With so few living, free Death Eaters left in Britain, this limits who this could possibly be.

In 1995, our world made the grave mistake of not believing that You-Know-Who had returned once more. Let us hope that we will not ignore this sign that the Death Eaters are once again active. I contacted Minister Shacklebolt for comment and was informed by his secretary that the Minister was busy with the relief effort.

FOR MORE DETAILS, SEE PAGE 2.


	5. Luna's Memory

_**Disclaimer:**_ _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

—CHAPTER FOUR—

 _Luna's Memory_

Dumbledore handed Harry some Floo Powder, which he took and quickly made his way back to the Rook, stumbling once again as he exited the fireplace, where he waited for Luna and Dumbledore to come through. It didn't take long before Luna came through. For some reason, Dumbledore did not return for another few minutes. When he finally came through the fireplace, Harry watched as Dumbledore pulled out a strange looking pocket watch and then looked to Harry and Luna.

"We have a little under an hour and a half to finish up," Dumbledore announced, placing the watch back in his pocket. "I believe we still have Miss Lovegood's memory to view."

"Yes, sir," Luna replied as gestured to her head to tell Dumbledore that he could take what he needed. "I think I'll come with you. It will be good to do some review." Dumbledore nodded and took out the Elder Wand but hesitated for a moment.

"I feel I must ask you two something before we continue," Dumbledore said slowly.

"Anything, sir," Harry replied as Luna nodded her head.

"You know about the three Deathly Hallows," Dumbledore stated. Harry and Luna looked at each other and nodded slowly. "What do you intend to do with this knowledge?"

"Nothing," Harry said immediately, much to Dumbledore's apparent surprise. "I don't want to be anything but Harry. I don't want to be the Master of Death. I'll keep the Invisibility Cloak, but I don't want the others."

"Daddy has told me a lot about the Deathly Hallows," Luna interjected before Dumbledore could say anything. "He is a believer. As am I. Correctly so, it seems. The problem that I have now, knowing that they exist, is that my interest in them is gone. The fun was always in guessing where they might be and considering what I might do should I ever get my hands on any one of them. They're not as interesting now, so I don't really want them. I have no reason to anymore."

Dumbledore looked at them, his eyes sparkling with unshed tears.

"I wish that I was as strong as you two are," he said sadly before sniffing and smiling. "I believe that we were going to enter Miss Lovegood's memories?" He put his wand against Luna's temple. "Think clearly, Miss Lovegood," he said. As she did so, he pulled his wand away and a silvery thread seemed to detach itself from Luna's head.

"That felt strange," Luna commented airily as Dumbledore put the memory into the Pensieve.

"Shall we go?" Dumbledore asked. Harry and Luna nodded, and Harry began to put his finger into the liquid in the bowl. For the first time, Harry felt himself pulled into the Pensieve itself. It was somewhat disorientating as the world around Harry morphed into a completely different place. He recognised the room from his own memory. It was a mostly bland room in which the older Harry and Luna were seated on two identical armchairs that looked incredibly similar to those that could be found in the Gryffindor Common Room.

The three of them were standing behind the seat of Memory-Luna who was facing Memory-Harry, who looked rather sombre. Harry looked over his older self closely as it was interesting to be able to see how he would age. He noted that his hair, though thinning, remained as uncontrollable as possible, although it was no longer black, but greying. He also took note of the rectangular glasses, thinking that they looked much better than the ones he currently had. Following that, Harry looked around and saw that there were even windows which looked out into a rather calming beach on one side and a forest on the other. When Harry looked back, Memory-Harry began to talk.

" _I am going to assume that you are viewing this memory after you viewed the memory Luna made for the younger version of me, which means you should know all about the history until Voldemort's downfall_." Memory-Harry spoke in a sombre tone that Harry found rather eerie. Just then, three armchairs appeared. Dumbledore sat in one while Luna sat in another. Harry took the third.

" _As you know, Voldemort was not killed that day. But we thought he had been for nineteen years. On the First of September in 2017, the Hogwarts Express was attacked, derailed and all of the occupants were killed_ ," Dumbledore and Harry gasped while Luna just stared forward. " _However, Voldemort didn't actually reveal himself until December of that year when he attacked St. Mungo's. After that, a large group of us had a conference with Dumbledore's portrait and we came to the conclusion that Voldemort made another Horcrux that we had failed to find._

" _This is where I will start. The Horcruxes_ ," Memory-Harry spat the last word as if it were evil. Dumbledore sat up straighter. " _We did not go into detail with the Horcruxes in the memory that is going to the younger me, so we will do so now._

" _I don't know how far along Dumbledore is at this point, so I will pretend that he knows nothing about any of them_ ," Memory Harry said. Based on Dumbledore's expression he did not have any idea about where the Horcruxes were or even what they were. " _Let's start at the beginning._ "

Memory Harry then went through all of the Horcruxes in detail and what he knew about each of them in reference to when they were created, where they were hidden and what enchantments surround them. He had just finished talking about Nagini, the snake, when he suddenly looked grave.

" _Those were the six Horcruxes I knew about going into my hunt for them in what would have been my Seventh Year. Unfortunately, Dumbledore was killed before he could tell me how to destroy them. But we worked out that Gryffindor's Sword was needed to do so as it had become imbued with Basilisk Venom from when I used it to kill the Basilisk at the end of my Second Year._

" _We had the Locket, the real one that is, when we finally got a hold of the Sword, thanks to Snape and his silver doe. Ron_ ," the name came out quite badly, " _destroyed the locket with the Sword. We then broke into Bellatrix Lestrange's vault in Gringotts and found Hufflepuff's Cup, but we lost the Sword in a negotiation with a goblin, Griphook. We found out that the last Horcrux was at Hogwarts, so we went there. Ron and Hermione went into the Chamber of Secrets and took a bunch of Basilisk fangs and Hermione destroyed the Cup. During the opening part of the battle, I found the Lost Diadem of Ravenclaw in the Room of Requirement_. _Vincent_ _Crabbe set the Room on Fire with Fiendfyre which, in turn, destroyed the Diadem._

" _We witnessed Snape's death in the Shrieking Shack and took his memories, in which I discovered that I had a piece of Voldemort's soul inside me._ " Dumbledore stopped the memory, and it took a moment for Harry to realise what had just been said. He felt himself start to shake.

"I'm a … Horcrux?" Harry asked, terrified. Luna left her chair and walked over to Harry. As his armchair was large enough, Luna squeezed in next to him and put her arms around his neck.

"So it seems," Dumbledore replied sadly. "I had … theorised that it might have happened, but I had nothing to base it on whatsoever. Something must have happened between now and your Seventh Year that convinced me, as Severus would have no reason to suspect it on his own."

"That means … It means I have to … die," Harry said. Somehow the revelation was not at all surprising too him, and yet it filled him with a sense of fear, foreboding and sadness. If it weren't for Luna, who hugged him closer, Harry might have reacted far worse.

"I suspect there will be more information within the memory," Dumbledore said and Harry suspected him of avoiding the topic. Despite feeling somewhat calmer, Harry still felt as though he wanted to cry. He didn't let himself do it. He couldn't. Luna clung to Harry, but moved her head to lean on his shoulder so that she could watch Memory-Harry talk. Dumbledore flicked his wand and the memory started up again.

" _So, with that knowledge, I walked to my death. I used the Resurrection Stone to see my parents, Sirius and Remus one last time. I then moved on to Voldemort who killed me_ ," Memory-Harry explained. Harry was suddenly alert again and Luna let go of him to sit up straighter. Once more, Dumbledore stopped the memory.

"Did he just say that Voldemort killed him?" Harry asked. "How is he still there?"

"I can only guess at this point," Dumbledore replied, though the twinkle had returned.

"Well hurry up and continue it," Harry said impatiently, forgetting for a moment who he was talking to. The memory restarted.

" _I went to a … world, I suppose is the best explanation, that was, apparently, in between life and death where I talked to Dumbledore for quite some time. He told me that I had a choice. I could either move on or go back_ ," Memory-Harry said, a fire blazing in his eyes. " _I chose to go back. I don't know to this day if this was all in my head or if it was real, and frankly I'd like to keep not knowing. The reason I survived was, according to Dumbledore and some of my own research, was because of a variety of things worked in tandem that day to keep me alive._

" _The first was that Voldemort had my blood, which contained my mother's protection._ " Harry looked to Dumbledore who smiled. " _The second was because I was willing to die for everyone in order to finish off Voldemort. The third was because I was a Horcrux so that meant that I had, in essence, two souls inside me. Since the Killing Curse essentially rips the soul from a body, it ripped the Horcrux from my body, though it was strong enough that it nearly ripped my own away as well. The fourth was because I was the true Master of the Elder Wand, having defeated Draco at Malfoy Manor. He was the Master because Dumbledore was disarmed by Draco before he was killed. That also meant that, being in possession of all three at once, I was the Master of Death. For all intents and purposes at any rate. I don't know whether all of these things were required for my survival, but I think it would be a ridiculous risk to attempt it again without all of those things in place._

" _So, as I was saying, I decided to go back. Neville killed Nagini with the Sword, which reappeared in the Sorting Hat when Neville most needed it. In the battle, Molly killed Bellatrix. And I killed Voldemort. Or so I thought_ ," Memory Harry said. Dumbledore then froze the memory again and Harry had never felt more relieved yet terrified at the same time.

"I can live," Harry breathed as Luna hugged him again. "I have to die, but I can live."

"That appears to be the case," Dumbledore said. "However, this raises quite a large conundrum, which I have a feeling this memory will delve into soon."

"What's that sir?" Harry asked. Dumbledore sighed.

"In order for Voldemort to be defeated, he has to be resurrected using your blood and, later, you must be killed," Dumbledore replied. "Add that to the fact that there appears to be a Horcrux that we know nothing about except that it exists and it appears that _our_ Horcrux hunt will not be complete as soon as would be best."

"Oh," Harry said before looking to Luna. "You know you don't have to be here with me anymore."

"Oh, it's fine," Luna replied, shifting herself a little. "It's comfortable here." Harry blushed again. It was frustrating him that he was doing that so much.

"I think we should resume the memory," Dumbledore said and the memory restarted.

" _As I'm sure Dumbledore, assuming he is viewing this memory, has already deduced, this causes something of a conundrum_ ," Memory-Harry said as Dumbledore chuckled. " _And he's chuckling right now, of course. Anyway, the problem is that Voldemort can only be defeated if he kills the younger version of me. And the only way we can safely have this happen is if Voldemort is resurrected in the same way as he was in my timeline._

" _This means that certain things_ must _happen, unfortunately_ ," Memory Harry said. " _I hope that you will have, by now, taken Pettigrew to the Ministry, but this does not matter in the slightest. The Prophecy that Trewlawney made in my Third Year_ will _be made one way or another and Voldemort will be resurrected. This means that you need to have the fake Moody at Hogwarts during my Fourth Year to maintain things. This, in itself, raises a rather large issue._

" _If Voldemort has a Death Eater stationed at Hogwarts, the site of a Horcrux, would he not have said Death Eater check the Horcrux to make sure it's still there?_ " Suddenly, something clicked in Harry's head. They are going to have to leave the Horcruxes where they were for now because Voldemort would likely check up on them.

" _This means that you cannot move the Diadem any time soon_ ," Memory-Harry said and Dumbledore sighed while Luna shifted herself in the seat again. " _For the same reasons, you can't safely remove the other Horcruxes, except for the Diary, as Voldemort never knew that Lucius had it in the first place, and also the Locket because he never worked out it was a fake. In other words, you need to keep the Diadem at Hogwarts, the Cup in Gringotts and the Ring at the Gaunt Shack._

" _You should be able to go after the Ring at the end of my Fifth Year, as Dumbledore did this time around. Voldemort didn't seem to even notice until just before the Battle of Hogwarts. The Cup can be checked at any time when Bellatrix escapes Azkaban, but it should be safe enough to get it by April or May in 1998 at the latest. Perhaps earlier, although by that point Bellatrix has full access. Voldemort could have the Room of Requirement checked for the Diadem during my Fourth, Sixth and Seventh Years. As Voldemort believes Snape to be his spy, it is doubtful that he would be used for this job in particular. If he had, I suspect Dumbledore would have found out about the Diadem long ago. The Snake is not made into a Horcrux until either my Fourth or Fifth Year. We think it's before my Fifth Year, sometime in the summer break."_

" _Now, this leads on to the final Horcrux_ ," Memory-Harry took a breath at this moment and his eyes flashed in annoyance. " _We have no clue as to what this Horcrux is or where he hid it. We checked even the more obscure areas over the years and found nothing. We don't even know when it was made. The point is, until you find this Horcrux, you cannot try to end Voldemort. It would be pointless_."

Dumbledore paused the memory again and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"This is not good," he said sadly. "We cannot prevent the next war from beginning. All we can do is attempt to stop it escalating. I had always believed that we would fall back into war in my lifetime, but I had hoped that we might have been able to use this information to prevent any of it." It sounded to Harry like Dumbledore was attempting to resign himself to the facts presented to him.

"We'll do it," Harry said fervently. Dumbledore looked towards him. "There's no other way. We have to do it."

"I agree with Harry," Luna said, not unwrapping her arms from around him. "It will be difficult, but we can do it. We must. We can't let this," Luna then let an arm free and waved around her, "happen. We cannot let him win."

"I agree," Dumbledore said quietly. "I just find myself frustrated that it must happen this way. We will put all of our resources into finding the final Horcrux. I hope this memory has some information on possible locations and objects." He waved his wand and the memory restarted.

Memory-Harry went on to talk about where the Horcrux wasn't and where it could be. He said that the Horcrux would not be at the Chamber of Secrets, the Orphanage, Borgin and Burkes, Albania, Hogwarts, the Cave, the Gaunt Shack or in any of the Death Eaters' vaults in Gringotts. He said he had personally checked each of these places himself before going into hiding and found no Horcrux. He did say that he had only three options for where the Horcrux could be that he hadn't checked thoroughly himself and those were somewhere in Azkaban, the Ministry of Magic and St. Mungo's. The last of which would be unlikely as Voldemort had destroyed St. Mungo's himself.

He reasoned that Azkaban was important because Voldemort's loyal followers stayed in there for so very long. He said that he could have planted the Horcrux in the Ministry when he was there at the end of Harry's Fifth Year. And he postulated that Voldemort could have a connection to St. Mungo's because of the amount of people who had to go there on his account.

" _So in other words_ ," Memory Harry concluded. " _It could be anything and it could be anywhere. It will be difficult, but I'm sure you understand the necessity of this. If it is not found and destroyed, it is highly likely that everything will end up as bad as it is for us right now._

" _I have quite some time left_ ," Memory Harry said. " _I would like to go over a few points of interest of what happened after he returned again_."

And so, Memory-Harry went through some of the key points of Voldemort's third coming. Harry, Luna and Dumbledore listened in with changing emotions, though it was mostly revulsion at what he had done to get to the power he did. When he was finished, Memory-Harry looked grave once more, though his eyes showed hope.

" _I will leave you with some closing comments_ ," Memory-Harry said. " _Trust people. The people listed in my younger version's memory can be trusted with this. Anyone else, you must be careful around. This does not mean you should tell everyone on that list, or that you shouldn't trust anyone who wasn't on the list with it. Make the decisions for yourself. Lastly, try to keep as much the same as you possibly can, otherwise too much will change and you will have more guesswork, which is something that you don't need._

" _Good luck and I hope your future is brighter than mine has been. Goodbye_ ," Memory-Harry said as the memory wound down and they found themselves being pushed out of the Pensieve and back into Luna's house. When they were out of the Pensieve, Harry fell back into a chair, his hand absently massaging his scar, the memento of the night Voldemort killed his parents. The night he became a Horcrux.

"Sir?" Harry said before pausing. "Do you think anything will happen? You know. Because I'm a Horcrux? I mean, I won't turn into Voldemort, will I?" Dumbledore didn't say anything for a few seconds before he finally spoke up.

"I don't think that the piece of Voldemort's soul would be big enough to have any adverse effects on you, especially as you have not seen anything like that in twelve years," he said confidently which made Harry feel better. "As you know, it caused a connection between you two, but it was never found out if that connection could be blocked by Occlumency or not. Now that you have natural Occlumency due to the potion, it may be blocked somewhat. We must be wary, however, that it may not be."

"Thank you sir," Harry said with a sniff. "That makes me feel a lot better."

"It is no trouble at all, Harry," Dumbledore replied with a warm smile. "I think that now would be a good time to discuss who we should inform of all of this."

"Hermione," Harry said instantly and Dumbledore nodded.

"I very much agree with that," Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling. "It appears that Miss Granger will grow to be a very smart and powerful witch. But she will have to learn Occlumency so that she can protect her mind and keep this a secret from anyone who might find out."

"Sir, if you don't mind me asking, who do you know that are Legilimens?" Harry asked. Dumbledore looked thoughtful for a minute before sighing.

"It is a difficult skill to learn. Occlumency is far easier, which is why there are more Occlumens than Legilimens in the world. I am a very powerful Legilimens myself," he said. "As is Alastor Moody. At Hogwarts, Severus is very proficient. Minerva and Filius have limited abilities in the field, though they are extremely proficient Occlumens. Madam Bones is one who is almost as proficient as myself. One or two Aurors know the skill as well. Voldemort is the main threat to you, however." Harry nodded.

"Do you think you could teach Occlumency to Hermione and anyone else who needs it?" Harry asked and Dumbledore stroked his beard.

"It may be possible," He replied. "If not, I can have Minerva, Filius or Severus teach whoever needs it."

"Harry," Luna interrupted. "I trust you remember Colin?" Harry nodded his head. "I think we should tell him too. We trusted his brother and Colin followed you to the end. He deserves to be told." Harry sighed.

"You're right," he said. "Of course you're right. So Colin will have to learn Occlumency." He turned to Dumbledore. "Can an eleven year old learn it?"

"I think so," Dumbledore replied with a smile. "If he is motivated he can. It may be slightly more difficult, but I do believe that it can be done."

"What about Neville?" Luna asked serenely and Harry tilted his head in thought.

"I think we could tell Neville," Harry agreed. "But, again, he'll need to know Occlumency."

"I think that would be no problem," Dumbledore said, smiling. "Miss Granger, Mr Creevey and Mr Longbottom can all be taught at the same time."

"Great," Harry said happily. "I also think we should tell Remus and Sirius."

"I agree," Luna said.

"That's good, Harry," Dumbledore said. "Remus already knows Occlumency in order to hide his being a werewolf and attempt to control his anger. I know that Sirius was proficient before being put in prison, but I don't know what he will be capable of when he gets out. We shall tell them. I don't think it would be prudent to inform Alastor as we need him in a few years."

"Should we tell Professor McGonagall?" Harry asked. Dumbledore frowned.

"I trust Minerva more than I trust almost anybody else, but I am unsure on this matter," Dumbledore replied. "I may have to think on it. I think we should discuss Draco Malfoy at this moment." Harry felt strangely conflicted when his old rival was mentioned.

"I don't know what we should do with him," Harry replied uncertainly.

"We did promise him," Luna pointed out.

"Yes we did, but we also don't want to change too much," Harry reasoned.

"But if we told him about all of this, we might be able to use him in some way," Luna said.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, confused.

"I think Luna means," Dumbledore interjected. "That we could use Mr Malfoy as a spy." Harry frowned.

"It's too dangerous," he said, suddenly feeling strange saying that about Draco Malfoy, of all people. Dumbledore nodded.

"I agree with you, Harry," Dumbledore said kindly. "However, it is clear that Lucius is going to go back to Voldemort when he returns. Draco will know a lot. Severus, having served at Hogwarts for as long as he has, will undoubtedly not have Voldemort's full confidence. Lucius will be higher up in the chain of command and, thus, so will Draco. He may be able to discover things that Severus would not, and may even give us the information we need to find that last Horcrux."

"But that's putting him in a lot of danger," Harry said. "If he's caught he'll be killed."

"The same can be said of Severus," Dumbledore said sadly. "I can have Severus teach Draco Occlumency and then we can tell him. Having another spy would be immensely helpful to our cause. One could argue that putting him in danger is what we need to do for the greater good. I will try my very best to protect Draco, of course, and if it turns out that he is in any danger at all, I will make sure that he is protected even further."

"But won't that change too much?" Harry asked. Luna shook her head.

"We can have Draco act the same as he normally would," Luna told Harry. "That way, the only people who will know Draco is on our side is us."

"Precisely," Dumbledore said happily. Harry sighed as he resigned himself to it.

"Fine. We'll make Draco a spy, provided he agrees," Harry said.

"Excellent," Dumbledore announced. "So we tell Miss Granger, Mr Creevey, Mr Longbottom, Mr Malfoy, Sirius and Remus with the possibility of Minerva?" Harry and Luna nodded. "Remus and Sirius were the best of friends at Hogwarts, so it would be prudent to tell them together and as soon as we can. I will organise Occlumency training for Miss Granger, Mr Creevey and Mr Longbottom as soon as school begins."

"Are you going to make sure that the Diadem is there?" Luna asked.

"I think that would be wise," he replied. "Now that I know where the room is, and how to access it, I will go there and have a thorough look around. If I do find the Diadem, I assure you that I will not touch it at all. Just to be certain that nothing will happen or change with regards to it."

"What about the other Horcruxes?" Harry asked. Dumbledore frowned.

"I will not go to the Gaunt Shack alone this time," Dumbledore said seriously. "It is obvious that I am too weak to do that alone. We cannot retrieve the Locket until Sirius is out of prison at the very earliest. We have the Diary do we not?" Harry nodded. "The Cup is nearly untouchable in Bellatrix's vault and Nagini has yet to be made into a Horcrux. There really isn't very much we can do in relation to them. I will, however, do as much research as I can into human Horcruxes so that we might find a safer way to rid you of the soul fragment."

"Thank you, sir," Harry said softly. Dumbledore pulled out the strange pocket watch again and looked at it in some alarm.

"It appears that you have just five minutes before Molly starts to worry about you," he said, placing the watch back in his pocket. "Now would be the best time to take my leave of both of you. You should make your way back to the Burrow as soon as you can. I understand that Molly can be most formidable when worried for those in her care."

Dumbledore received two nods so he turned, took a pinch of Floo Powder and went through the fireplace back, presumably, to his office. Harry took a shaky breath and ran his hand through his hair.

"It will be okay, Harry," Luna told him. "Dumbledore will find a way to remove the Horcrux. And if he doesn't … well, we will just have to deal with that when it happens. For now, you should try to forget about it. It has not changed you. You are still Harry."

Harry looked at Luna for a moment, as though trying to find something he needed. Harry smiled slightly.

"Thanks," he said. "I'll try my best."

"We should go now," Luna told him, taking his hand. Harry looked at their clasped hands for a moment before looking up. Luna opened the front door and they left the Rook and headed through the trees, towards the Burrow.

* * *

Despite it only being midday, Luna felt quite tired. Everything had happened that day quite suddenly and it was very tiring for her. Not to mention emotional. She had enough just having to watch Harry's memory of her talking to him. It was all so much. _Poor Harry went through so much_ , she thought to herself as she gripped the real Harry's hand and opened the door. She swore to herself that she wouldn't let him go through all of that again.

Despite that, it seemed as though there were a lot of things beyond her control. He was going to have to be a part of Voldemort's resurrection, both for his own survival and so that Voldemort could actually be properly taken down. Before that, though, he had nearly three normal years and she intended to make sure that those years were as stress-free for him as possible.

It might prove to be a difficult task, but at the very least they were aware of the basics of what was supposed to happen, and they could be prepared for those eventualities at the very least. The problem, at least as Luna saw it, was that they might well be changing too much for their foreknowledge to have a huge effect. The small things could have large consequences, after all. Would Harry's lessened friendship with Ronald have a larger effect? Would his being friends with Colin do the same? And he hadn't even met her until his Fifth Year, so their friendship could well cause problems.

Thinking on this, especially with the information they had gained through the memories, Luna didn't think that many of these changes would have too much of a negative effect on Voldemort's plans. He only needed Harry to revive himself and to get the Prophecy. Harry's friends were of no importance to him whatsoever. Voldemort didn't understand the concept of friendship, regardless, so he wouldn't think that it would be of any value. In the end, Luna didn't think the large things would change much, but the smaller ones might.

As they stepped out of the treeline, they saw Mrs Weasley standing at the door to the house, watching them approach. Luna was unsure whether she seemed stern or worried, but knew that she wouldn't be like that for very long.

"You're late," Mrs Weasley said. Luna felt Harry's hand grip hers a little tighter for a second for some reason. She saw Mrs Weasley's eyes flicker downwards to their hands and her lips twitch slightly. "Oh, well. No harm done," she said happily, opening the door. "Come inside. I have a few sandwiches ready for you both."

The two of them entered the kitchen to find Ginevra, Ronald, Fred and George all sitting around the table, eating the aforementioned sandwiches. Ginevra's eyes flickered to their hands for a moment. Harry moved to let go, but Luna wouldn't let him. Ginevra flashed her a glare, though only for a second as it softened and her cheeks tinged pink.

Ronald, however, saw their hands and screwed his nose up in disgust. Luna nearly rolled her eyes at him. After all, she was only holding her friends hand. Friends do that. How could Ronald not know that, being friends with a girl like Hermione?

It was actually the twins which concerned Luna the most. When they saw the two clasped hands, grins of pure evil were plastered onto their faces. She could tell that they were planning on teasing Harry mercilessly, and Harry seemed to notice as he quickly let go of Luna's hand, which she allowed this time, and blushed slightly, though Luna didn't understand why. _Is he embarrassed?_ she thought.

"Good afternoon," Luna said as she sat in a seat and took a sandwich. Harry sat in the seat next to her, also taking a sandwich.

"Good afternoon," Ronald said in a disgusted tone, Ginevra said in an oddly sad voice and the twins said in teasing voices. Luna sighed and started eating her sandwich as the Weasleys started to talk amongst themselves and Harry. Luna and Ginevra sat in near silence and Harry looked a little uncomfortable talking to Ronald, Luna thought. As the boys were talking, Ginevra leant over to Luna.

"Can I talk to you after lunch please, Luna?" she whispered. Luna quickly nodded her head, seeing Ginevra's relieved facial expression after she did so.

To her relief, Harry wasn't being teased by Fred and George. In fact, they were downright nice to him, which made her feel both relieved and concerned, worried that the teasing was still to come. The boys just talked about Quidditch for some time, something that Luna had no interest in whatsoever, although she thought she might feel differently at Hogwarts when she could see a game in person and cheer Harry from the stands.

Another sandwich later, Luna finished and Ginevra pulled her aside, leaving Harry to the mercy of the Weasley boys. Out of the corner of her eye, Luna saw the grins on Fred and George's faces return as she was pulled forcefully away.

Ginevra led Luna up to her room and shut the door quietly, so as to not alert Percy, Luna guessed. Ginevra told her to sit on the bed, which she did. Ginny then paced the room for a minute before she finally said something.

"I'm sorry," she said quickly. She stopped pacing and looked at Luna who was looking up at her.

"It's alright, Ginevra," Luna replied with a smile lighting up her face.

"It's not alright," Ginevra said despondently. "You're my friend and I got angry with you for something so silly."

"It's not silly," Luna said, telling the truth. "You like Harry because you know all of the stories about the Boy Who Lived," Luna got up from the bed and walked to the desk, picking up a small book entitled _Harry Potter and the Flight of the Dragon_ by Rita Skeeter. Ginny looked at the book for a second before blushing. "This isn't Harry."

"I know that now," Ginny said quietly, taking the book from Luna and placing it in a drawer. "Mum talked to me about all of this. It's just … I've thought that that was Harry for so long."

"I know," Luna said softly. "But they aren't real. Those books," Luna pointed to the drawer, "are about a made up boy. That Harry Potter doesn't exist, Ginny." Ginevra looked up at the use of her shortened name. "The real Harry Potter is downstairs, loving every moment here because his real home is terrible."

"What?" Ginevra looked horrified.

"I thought you would know by now," Luna said. "Harry had to be rescued from the Dursleys by Ronald, Fred and George. They had him locked up." Ginevra looked at her in shock before sighing.

"I … I didn't know," Ginevra said sadly, looking at the floor. "I always thought …"

"That The Boy Who Lived would be like a knight in shining armour?" Luna asked. Ginevra looked up and nodded. "Harry doesn't want to be that. He doesn't want to be anything that was in those books. Harry just wants to be Harry."

"Not The Boy Who Lived," Ginevra breathed, as though she had just had the realisation herself. "I've blown it, haven't I?" she asked.

"I can't answer that," Luna replied. "I cannot predict the future." She could have laughed at her choice of words.

"Do you think I could ever be his friend?" Ginevra asked and Luna felt a strange pang of sadness.

"I don't know," Luna replied. "I'm not Harry so I can't tell you. Only you and Harry can work that out. Give it some time."

"Thank you Luna," Ginevra said, staring at the drawer. "If you don't mind, I'd like some time alone."

"Of course," Luna replied, hugging her friend. "I'll just be downstairs."

Luna walked quietly down the stairs of the Burrow and heard laughter coming from the kitchen. She walked in to see Harry and the twins looking out a window and laughing.

"What's going on?" Luna asked. As she did, Harry moved a little bit away so she could look out of the window and see for herself. When she looked out the window, she too began to laugh.

Ronald was in amongst the chickens, acting completely like one of them, even going so far as clucking and scratching at the ground with his bare feet. This went on for a while before Mrs Weasley came around and saw him and promptly started yelling at him for acting like a fool and finally, after some failed choices, chose the right spell to set him right. Ronald came through the kitchen, his face red with embarrassment and silently went up to his room.

"Bloody git," Fred said as he sat down and grabbed a drink. George mimicked his twin's movements and soon Luna had a drink in her hand and handed Harry one.

"What makes you say that?" Luna asked. Fred and George shared grins and Harry blushed slightly.

"We, that is Fred and I," George said.

"- Were teasing Harry about holding your hand," Fred said.

"Just as we would do to any of our dear brothers," George added pointedly.

"And have done in the past," Fred pointed out.

"Ah, Bill really didn't like us for a while," George said wistfully.

"Indeed. Anyway, ickle Ronniekins took it the wrong way," Fred continued.

"He thought we were teasing Harry because he was holding _your_ hand and decided to get involved in it," George said, getting a stony look that was on the face of Fred and Harry as well.

"After a rather insensitive comment," Fred said.

"- We got him to have a sweet," George said, grinning again.

"That sweet caused what you saw," Fred said.

"If we hadn't have done it," George continued.

"- Harry would've decked him we reckon," Fred finished and Harry was now quite red as he murmured something that sounded like 'you're damn right' to Luna.

"Thank you," Luna told the twins and Harry, though she wasn't sure if Harry knew that she was addressing him as well. Truth be told, she would rather that happen to Ronald then for Harry to have hit him.

The rest of the afternoon was quite pleasant. Luna, Harry and the twins had a lovely conversation in which they discussed Hogwarts, the Professors, Crumple-Horned Snorkacks and family. Ronald and Ginevra were not seen for the rest of the afternoon.

Mrs Weasley insisted that Luna and Harry stay for dinner so they did. Ronald and Ginevra did make their way downstairs for that. Ronald looked very sour and Ginevra looked as if she had been crying and she hid her face as often as she could from Harry during the meal, something that Luna knew Harry didn't notice. When the meal was done, the two went back upstairs.

"Thank you very much Mrs Weasley," Luna said after dinner. "But Harry and I should be getting to my house. It is getting dark."

"Are you sure you won't stay here, dear?" Mrs Weasley asked uncertainly and Luna shook her head.

"I wouldn't sleep if I did," Luna replied and Mrs Weasley sighed.

"Okay then, but I will not allow you to walk to your house alone," she said. "Not at this time of night. Percy will walk with you." Percy didn't seem too happy about that, but he didn't disagree.

"That will be fine, Mrs Weasley," Luna said happily.

"Thank you very much for dinner," Harry said with a smile. "It was brilliant."

"Why thank you, Harry," Mrs Weasley said happily. "Now you should be going. You can head over here after you've had breakfast in the morning. If you are early enough you may catch Arthur before work. I believe he has some Muggle-related questions for you, Harry."

"That'd be great," Harry enthused as Percy stood up.

"Let's get going then," Percy said pompously. "I would like to get some more work done before I go to sleep."

With that Percy accompanied Luna and Harry back to the Rook where he made sure they were safely inside the house before he turned on his heel and left. The whole trip was made in silence.

"Well he's fun," Harry said sarcastically before sitting in a chair. Luna laughed a little.

"Just a little bit," she said with a smile. There was silence for a minute.

"I think I should write a letter to Hermione," Harry said, standing from his seat.

"I'll get you a quill and some parchment," Luna said as she moved off and grabbed some and gave them to Harry. She watched as he wrote, telling her about meeting Luna and that he was enjoying the company of the Weasleys, though he was spending the night at the Rook. Harry and Luna made sure that he made no reference to the new memories. He also asked when she would be going into Diagon Alley to see if they could meet up.

After they did this, Luna and Harry stayed up talking for another hour or so, mostly discussing things other than the memories and the future, before finally succumbing to their tiredness and going off to bed. Luna lay in her bed, looking up at the bare ceiling. _That would be a nice place for a painting of friends_ , Luna mused, her thoughts drifting to Harry as she fell asleep.

* * *

 _ **2021**_

 _Rolf Scamander was in Norway doing some research on a new species of inland, magical turtle that one of his colleagues had told him about. He told Luna, who had readily agreed that he should leave immediately and do some research. As he moved about the landscape, Rolf thought about his family back home._

 _Luna had kept Lorcan and Lysander with her, much to the dislike of the two six year olds. Rolf smiled when he thought about his twin sons and their love of magizoology at such a young age. He had never seen anyone take to the field as easily as they did. It was heart-warming that his sons wanted to follow in their parents' footsteps._

 _Rolf tugged at his ever growing brown beard as he walked, scanning the ground for signs of the elusive turtle. He thought about how much the twin boys resembled their mother. They had short, dirty blonde hair and both had her large blue eyes. A lot of people said that their facial features were like that of Rolf's though he didn't think so._

 _Rolf reached up to his face and felt the scar that went across his left eye. He received that in 2014 when he went on a trip to America. The blasted beast attacked him quicker than he would have liked. He had multiple scars across his body from that battle. Perhaps it was these scars that stopped him from comparing his boys' looks to his own._

 _The thoughts of Lorcan and Lysander went, as they always did, towards Luna, his beloved wife. Rolf first met Luna in 2005 when she started work as a magizoologist. By this stage Rolf was thirty-four and Luna was only twenty-four. Despite the ten year age difference, Rolf fell for the strange blonde woman hard._

 _Rolf and Luna worked in the same field for years but never came into direct contact with each other until 2009 when they went overseas to look for a specific type of rabbit. It was there that Rolf asked Luna out and she said yes. They were married in 2014, before his trip to America and in 2016 they had their twin sons. Luna and his sons were the people that meant the most to him in the world._

 _Rolf was of the belief that nothing should stop just because the world is terrible and he stuck to that belief even while Voldemort was once again wreaking havoc. That was why, in 2021, he was outdoors and still working. Just because Voldemort was around again didn't mean he was going to stop doing what he loved. It was just not in him to do so._

 _His thoughts were interrupted when he finally found what he was looking for. A small blue turtle about eight inches long. He reached into his bag and quickly put on the strongest dragon-hide gloves he could and slowly and carefully picked up the turtle._

 _Despite the gloves, his hands grew cold, as this was one of the properties of the turtle. It was a creature that was found in almost any landscape, but no matter where it resided, it was always as cold as a blizzard. It was an intriguing creature to view up close. As he held it, it seemed to be radiating the cold off its body, including the shell. Rolf watched as it tried to get away by flailing its limbs._

 _Rolf reached back into his bag and pulled out an unbreakable box. He sat the box on the ground, sitting the ice-cold turtle inside and placing the lid on it. Suddenly, Rolf could see through the box and view the turtle as at moved around slowly._

That's odd, _Rolf thought to himself as he began to shiver._ It's in the box. I should feel the cold less now. _Rolf instinctively drew his wand and turned around. He now knew why he was still feeling the cold, and it wasn't because of the turtle. Gliding towards him were some of the foulest creatures known to man. Dementors._

 _Rolf closed his eyes and thought of his Luna shortly after giving birth, nursing both of their sons as he watched on with a smile etched on his face that wouldn't leave for days. He focused on his love for Luna. His love for Lorcan and Lysander._

"EXPECTO PATRONUM _!" Rolf cried and seconds later a silver wolf jumped from the end of his wand and ran forward, towards the Dementors gliding towards him. Despite the presence of his Patronus, Rolf felt the Dementors try to drain all his happy memories. Rolf utilised the Occlumency his grandfather had taught him and was able to block out some of the despair._

 _He kept his wand raised and leaned down, picking up the box with the turtle in it and tucking it under his arm. He moved to turn on the spot and attempted to Apparate away, but something happened to stop him._

 _While his wolf Patronus was chasing away the Dementors, it ran to the left, leaving a path for one stray Dementor. It rushed forwards and with every centimetre it got closer, Rolf could feel more and more despair to the point where he couldn't bring himself to move._

 _He watched as his Patronus quickly blinked out of existence, allowing the rest of the Dementors to close in on him. The despair became too much and Rolf dropped the unbreakable box and fell backwards. Despite wanting them to, his eyes would not close._

 _The one stray Dementor that his Patronus failed to contain moved forward and lowered its hood, revealing a skeleton where there should have been a face. It wasn't just a skull. There were strands of muscle still clinging to it, and somehow it formed a red ring where the mouth should be._

 _As the Dementor's mouth opened to deliver the Kiss, Rolf felt strangely at peace. He looked into the holes where the Dementor's eyes were meant to be and felt a surge of emotion before the image of his beautiful Luna nursing their twin sons flashed once more before his eyes and stayed there until he knew no more, his hand resting on the unbreakable box._


	6. Sirius Black

**_D_** ** _isclaimer:_** _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

—CHAPTER FIVE—

 _Sirius Black_

The day was coming to a close and it was becoming dark very quickly. It was officially two hours and fifteen minutes overtime for Amelia Bones and she was thoroughly irritated. Irritated with the Ministry. Irritated with Peter Pettigrew. Irritated with Barty Crouch. But most of all she was irritated with Cornelius Fudge. Amelia's scowl deepened as she walked the halls of Azkaban Prison, her wand held high with her Patronus, in the form of an owl, flying ahead of her, dispelling the Dementors and the feelings they bring with them. Beside the silver owl was a silver lynx, the Patronus of Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt who had been tasked with accompanying her.

 _Fudge is a damn fool_ , Amelia thought bitterly. Fudge had tried to stop Amelia from freeing "insane mass-murderer" Sirius Black. When Amelia went to him and requested Barty Crouch be present, the man damn near went insane. He had asked Amelia to provide a memory of the event where she witnessed Pettigrew in the flesh and questioned him, to which Amelia complied willingly.

But, oh no, that wasn't nearly enough for the bumbling fool. He then asked her to take Veritaserum to confirm that the memory was correct. Amelia, thoroughly annoyed by this point, agreed and Fudge asked several questions which he deemed important and necessary but _still_ wasn't convinced that she had captured a "dead man".

So then Fudge asked to be taken to Peter Pettigrew so that he could question the man himself. _Him! A_ melia thought angrily, her scowl deepening. The moans, groans and shouts from the cells of Azkaban were causing her Patronus to flicker, helped, no doubt, by her angry thoughts. But Amelia couldn't help it.

Despite her thoughts that Fudge was not trained well enough to do a proper questioning, she took him to Pettigrew where he force-fed the man Veritaserum and asked him some more questions that Amelia had already told him the answers to. But even _that_ wasn't enough for Fudge. He sent for someone to verify that the man was, in fact, Pettigrew. Only when that person announced that the man in front of Fudge was, in fact, Pettigrew did Fudge finally relent and bring down Barty Crouch, who was much easier to convince.

Barty was completely disgusted that he had sent an innocent man to Hell and Amelia felt a sick pleasure watching Barty be torn apart by what he had done, and immediately felt terrible afterwards. It was just something that she would never do and she couldn't help but hold Barty entirely accountable. She would never imprison someone without a trial. That thought would never even cross her mind.

Nonetheless, it did seem that Barty felt genuinely bad and offered to speak to Sirius in person to apologise. He even offered to accompany Amelia to Azkaban, which Amelia instantly shot down, stating that the presence of the man who put him there would just serve to anger Sirius and that, given that the man had just spent over ten years in Azkaban constantly around the foulest creatures on Earth, Amelia wasn't sure what his mental state would be.

Azkaban and her own thoughts finally caught up to her as her Patronus faded away into nothing, leaving the lynx alone. Amelia felt a slight feeling of despair wash over her. As it had been ingrained in her head long ago, she pictured her beautiful niece Susan, the only remaining member, other than herself, of the Bones family, sitting underneath a Christmas tree, gleefully unwrapping gifts.

" _Expecto Patronum_!" Amelia spoke loudly. A sprout of silver mist erupted from her wand and formed itself into the familiar owl which soon found its spot next to Shacklebolt's lynx.

"The place getting to you?" Shacklebolt asked in his low voice. Amelia shook her head.

"Hardly," she replied. "I keep thinking about Fudge. The absolute buffoon." Shacklebolt chuckled.

"That's your boss you know," he reminded her. Amelia couldn't help but crack a small smile.

"That he is," Amelia replied before lowering her voice so only she could hear it. "For now."

The two continued to walk, going up at least three flights of stairs and down countless hallways. Amelia shuddered as she walked past the cell that housed the cackling Bellatrix Lestrange. When Amelia looked into the cell as she passed she saw that Bellatrix was no longer the beautiful woman she had once been. The black haired personification of evil was sitting on her ratty bed, her head held back, laughing at the top of her voice for no reason. Her body was skeletal and showed no indication that she had, at any point, been a desirable woman.

Amelia stopped walking for a moment to look at her. As she did, Bellatrix seemed to sense her and the cackle immediately ceased. A few feet forward, Shacklebolt had stopped walking. Amelia watched, her wand raised and her Patronus flickering slightly.

"Madam Bones," Shacklebolt said, but Amelia didn't pay him any attention. She was watching as Bellatrix stood from her bed, remarkably able to support herself, and walked to the bars of her cell. Amelia took a step back to take herself out of the murderer's reach.

"Oh, Bonesie," Bellatrix said in barely above a whisper, a sadistic spreading across her face. "It's a shame that we couldn't get all of your blood-traitor family. It'll have to wait until later."

"There is no _later_ for you, Bellatrix," Amelia said coldly, her Patronus blazing slightly with the thoughts of her family. "Your Master is dead." To Amelia's surprise, Bellatrix threw her head back and laughed again.

"Is he, Bonesie?" Bellatrix asked with a sneer, raising up her left arm and pulling back the jumpsuit revealing a terrible looking forearm, bearing a very dim Dark Mark. Amelia contained her surprise to a momentary eye widening as she looked impassively at Bellatrix. "He told me," Bellatrix said with a sadistic smile. "The Dark Lord said 'The Dark Mark shall be upon your arm for as long as I live'. And from what I see, the Dark Mark is still upon my arm. My, my. Whatever could that mean?" Then the insane woman turned, her head tilted back and the laughter filling the nearly deserted hallway, and sat on the bed, continuing to laugh.

Amelia shook her head and thought again of her remaining family and her Patronus blazed. Despite this, the image of the Dark Mark on Bellatrix's forearm was ingrained in her mind.

"Madam Bones," Shacklebolt said as Amelia caught up to the larger man. "She is insane. There is no reason to take what she says seriously."

"I am aware of that, Shacklebolt," Amelia snapped, sounding colder than she had intended. "We have a job to do. Let's get it done so we can leave this godforsaken place."

Truth be told, Amelia was worrying about the implications of the conversation she just had. If Bellatrix was right, then Dumbledore had been right all these years. Lord Voldemort was still alive somewhere. She found that, the more she thought about it, the more she realised she had known it all along.

 _How could a mere one year old kill the strongest Dark Lord since Grindelwald?_ Amelia asked herself. _Dumbledore had trouble defeating Grindelwald at the age of sixty-four and he is supposedly the strongest wizard of the age. Something else happened in Godric's Hollow_.

Shacklebolt broke Amelia's thoughts by stopping abruptly and turning to a cell door. She was greeted by the sight of a man slightly propped up on a bed staring at the two silver Patronuses in wonder. Amelia saw that he had a gaunt, sunken face, waxy skin, yellow teeth, and long, matted hair. Gone was the energetic-looking youth that Amelia had known before. He had been replaced with something that looked remarkably like a corpse. Sirius Black did not look good after over ten years in Azkaban Prison.

Amelia lowered her wand, dispelling her Patronus, and reached into her pocket. She found the small key to the cell and moved to open it. As she did, she saw Sirius tenderly swing his legs off the bed and rest them on the stone floor. He stood up weakly, his knees seemingly buckling, but he walked to the cell door just as it swung open. He opened his mouth to talk.

"I … I … What?" was all he could say and even then it sounded terribly hoarse. Amelia knew that Sirius wouldn't have had any water in about twenty-four hours. She looked to Kingsley who fished in a pocket of his robes and pulled out a Muggle water bottle and gave it to Amelia who, in turn, gave it to Sirius. The man was leaning against the bars for support but he eagerly opened the bottle and started to drink, water spilling from the sides of his mouth.

"We're here to let you out," Amelia said simply and Sirius' dull, grey eyes bulged.

"How … P-Peter … Animagus … Rat … Harry …" Sirius said weakly as he took another drink. Amelia motioned for Kingsley to support Sirius. Kingsley nodded and put Sirius' arm around his broad shoulders so that the man could be supported as he walked. Amelia would have liked to be able to Apparate or Portkey out, but there were wards in place so they had to walk.

" _Expecto Patronum_!" Amelia said and the owl flew out of her wand once more. "You're quite lucky Sirius."

"How so?" Sirius replied, still very hoarsely, but he sounded much better.

"It was your godson who found Pettigrew," Amelia explained, causing Sirius looked at her sharply, his face filling with emotion and he almost immediately looked ten years younger.

"How is he? Harry?" Sirius said quickly. Amelia smiled and motioned for him to keep walking.

"He's fine, Sirius," she replied. "From what I understand he was staying at the Weasleys' and that's where he found Peter." Sirius gave her a slightly questioning look. Amelia didn't know whether he was asking why Harry was at the Weasleys or why Pettigrew was. "Harry is apparently good friends with Ronald Weasley," Amelia explained. "It was Ronald's pet rat that turned out to be Pettigrew."

"Ah …" Sirius replied before coughing and taking another drink. He hadn't even realised the bottle was filling itself back up. "Where will I go from here?"

"Kingsley and I will take you to St. Mungo's where you will spend a few weeks under the watchful eyes of a crack team of Healers," Amelia replied, nearly outright laughing as she saw Sirius' look of dread. Unfortunately, the next thing she knew was the cackle of Bellatrix Lestrange ringing through the hallway ahead of her.

Amelia, Shacklebolt and Sirius all said nothing as they neared Bellatrix's cell. When they got there, Amelia saw Sirius look in and stop when he saw who it was. Bellatrix stopped her laughing again and looked towards Sirius with undisguised loathing in her face.

"YOU!" she shouted as she sprang to her feet and ran to the bars, pushing her face as close to them as possible and reaching her arms through to claw at the three of them. "Blood-traitor filth! I expected you to die in here! You don't deserve the name Black!" Sirius chuckled weakly and let go of Shacklebolt who stepped aside, sensing that something needed to be done.

"You only survive in here, Bellatrix," Sirius paused to cough once, hobbling slowly towards her, "because you're insane. The Dementors - they do little to you. I survived." He coughed again a few times. "I survived because of the thought of my little godson who I left behind … because of my own damn foolishness. I survived … because I was innocent. You _will_ rot in here, dear cousin. You _will_ die in here. In the meantime, I will live a life outside. I am certain this is the last time we meet dear little Bella. You could have been so much more."

Sirius moved towards Shacklebolt again, who helped him stand again as Sirius took a drink of the water. They started to walk again, leaving behind a shrieking Bellatrix.

"I WILL GET OUT OF HERE! MARK MY WORDS! THE DARK LORD WILL RETURN AND I SHALL BE BY HIS SIDE ONCE MORE!" she shrieked to their retreating backs, her hands flailing outside of the bars of her cell. She continued like this for a good while before Amelia could no longer hear her.

Soon they reached the exit to the prison. The very moment they stepped outside, Amelia took a quill from her robes and pointed her wand at it. " _Portus_ ," she intoned and the quill glowed bright blue. Shacklebolt and Sirius each grabbed the quill and they all felt the pull at their navels and they found themselves at St. Mungo's Hospital.

* * *

Harry woke slowly and opened his eyes. For a moment he panicked because he didn't realise where he was. When he finally calmed down he realised that he was no longer at the Dursleys and that he was, in fact, sleeping in the Lovegood's guest bedroom. He put his arms behind his head as he lay on the bed, not particularly wanting to get up. But after about five minutes he realised that he would have to, as he heard the sound of someone working downstairs and the smell of what seemed to be bacon and eggs.

He got out of bed, showered quickly and put on his clothes before heading downstairs. When he got to the kitchen he had to nearly backtrack as he saw Luna seated at the table while Albus Dumbledore was working on breakfast.

"Good morning, Harry," Luna said brightly while Dumbledore flipped a piece of bacon.

"Morning, Luna," Harry replied, sounding slightly confused. "Good morning sir."

"It is indeed," Dumbledore replied, giving Harry a smile.

"If you don't mind my asking sir, why are you here?" Harry asked and Dumbledore chuckled.

"I do so like to make people breakfast, Harry," he replied, a twinkle in his blue eyes. "I have so few chances to do so, and I thought that the two of you might enjoy it. Also, I have good news from Amelia. She and Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt retrieved Sirius from his cell last night." Harry's heart immediately lifted. "Sirius will spend all of the rest of your summer holidays at St. Mungo's recovering."

"Really?" Harry asked happily. "They really just let him out? Just like that?"

"Indeed they did," Dumbledore replied, grabbing a plate and loading it with food before giving it to Harry who took it to the table and sat next to Luna. "As Sirius was never formally charged with anything, it was rather easy for Amelia to get him released."

"When can I see him?" Harry asked eagerly.

"I was thinking I would take you to St. Mungo's later today to see him," Dumbledore said, getting a plate for himself. "He has apparently been asking a lot about you."

"Really?" Harry asked, cursing himself for sounding so childish.

"According to Amelia, he cannot wait to see you," Dumbledore replied with a large grin. "I do believe we have a slight problem however. This will be in the Daily Prophet this morning, or at the very least tomorrow morning. The Weasleys must be informed before their name comes up."

"Oh," Harry said, having momentarily forgotten that Pettigrew had been found with the Weasleys.

"I'm sure we can tell them when we are finished eating," Luna said. "I'm certain they will all mostly understand."

"Yes," Dumbledore replied with a slight frown. "If I'm to understand it correctly, Ronald may be slightly put out that you stole the rat, Harry. I believe Percy may not be much better."

"Well, if they are then they can be that way," Harry said uncharacteristically coldly.

"Not to worry, Harry," Dumbledore said. "We will just tell them that you were acting on my orders. I'm sure that will placate them at least a little."

"And it will take away the notion that Harry knew that it was Pettigrew by himself," Luna said thoughtfully before popping a piece of bacon in her mouth.

"Indeed," Dumbledore nodded. "I am, after all, the all-knowing, all-seeing, all-powerful Albus Dumbledore." Dumbledore said unnaturally pompously which caused Harry and Luna to descend into fits of giggles.

They all finished breakfast and Dumbledore used a few spells to do the washing up. Harry went upstairs and grabbed the few things he had with him and then they all set off to The Burrow. When they got there, they found Mrs Weasley working on something outside. She turned around and caught sight of them. She jumped when she saw Dumbledore and ran over to them.

"Albus! How are you?" Mrs Weasley asked excitedly.

"I am feeling most excellent today, Molly. I trust you are well?" Dumbledore asked kindly.

"I'm fine despite the lost rat problem," Mrs Weasley said with a slight frown. Harry exchanged a glance with Luna who didn't look worried in the slightest which actually calmed Harry down quite a bit. "What are you doing here? Is it to do with the twins? What have they done this time?"

"No, Molly," Dumbledore replied with a smile. "It isn't the twins. I had to see Harry this morning, so I dropped by and made both he and Luna breakfast." Mrs Weasley looked both relieved and surprised. "And I may have the solution to your rat problem."

"Well then, by all means come inside," Mrs Weasley said pleasantly. "Harry and Luna, you go and get Ron." Harry had a bad feeling about that, but nodded in time with Luna and they both took off inside.

Before they could go upstairs, they ran into a very jovial Mr Weasley, who Harry had not met before. Harry was glad to finally meet Mr Weasley, and told him so, but also said that Mrs Weasley had asked them to find Ron and Ginny. Mr Weasley told them that they should never disobey Mrs Weasley and so the two took off up the stairs.

"You!" he said angrily, pointing a finger at Harry. Harry backed down slightly. "Where's Scabbers? You stole him!"

"How do you –" Harry began but Ron cut him off.

"You were using the Cloak yesterday," Ron accused, turning slightly red. "I saw the prints in the grass leading away from The Burrow! What did you do with him?"

"Ron, let me expl–" Harry was cut off once more.

"So you admit it? You stole Scabbers?" Ron yelled, attracting Mr Weasley, Fred, George, Ginny and an irate looking Percy to the room.

"Ron I –" It happened again.

"Why would you steal Scabbers, huh?" Ron asked before glaring at Luna. "Probably got him for her in some sort of loony experiment." Harry turned to Luna and saw her pale slightly

"Ron, that was uncalled for," Mr Weasley said, placing a hand on his youngest son's shoulder. "And you won't even let Harry talk."

"What does he need to talk about?" Ron asked angrily, going redder. "He stole Scabbers!"

"What does it even matter?" Fred asked suddenly.

"You hate Scabbers. Always with the complaining," George said.

"That's not the point!" Ron said, glaring at the twins. "He stole him!"

"Acting on my orders," came the voice of Dumbledore from the doorway. Ron squeaked slightly and turned a deeper red.

"Your orders, Albus?" Mr Weasley asked, looking confused. "Why would you need our rat?"

"Perhaps we should adjourn to the living room. We can discuss this further there," Dumbledore said and the Weasleys all obliged. Ron still didn't look too happy as he glared at Harry and Luna who was looking quite upset.

"Well?" Ron asked angrily once everyone was settled.

"Ronald!" Mrs Weasley scolded and Ron turned away slightly. "Go ahead Albus."

"I received word yesterday that your pet rat, Scabbers," Dumbledore began, "was not, in fact, a rat."

"Of course he was," Percy said defensively.

"How long have you had him?" Dumbledore asked. Percy looked thoughtful but didn't answer. Instead, Mr Weasley did.

"Has to be over ten years now," Percy replied.

"And how many rats have you known that live that long?" There was silence so Dumbledore began again. "Scabbers was, in truth, actually an Animagus named Peter Pettigrew." Percy along with Mr and Mrs Weasley looked confused.

"Peter Pettigrew?" Percy asked incredulously, looking at Dumbledore incredulously. "He was killed by Sirius Black."

"Alas, no," Dumbledore replied. "Sirius was not guilty of the crimes with which he was charged."

"But he's in Azkaban," Percy said indignantly.

"The Ministry is not infallible, I am afraid to say. Sirius was given no trial before being placed in a cell in Azkaban," Dumbledore replied kindly. Mr Weasley was looking thoughtful, while Mrs Weasley just looked worried. "Both Sirius and Peter were questioned yesterday by the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Madam Amelia Bones. The findings were that Peter Pettigrew was, in fact, the Potters' Secret Keeper and a Death Eater." Mrs Weasley gasped and Dumbledore gave her a pitying look. "When Sirius, a long-time friend of James Potter, found these details out after James and Lily's deaths, he tracked Peter down, intending to kill him. He found him in a Muggle street. Peter yelled that Sirius betrayed the Potters before blowing up a gas main, killing thirteen Muggles. He then cut off his own finger and transformed into a rat to get away."

"And all they found of Pettigrew was a finger," Mr Weasley breathed, holding his wife's shoulders.

"No!" Ron yelled. "You're lying. Scabbers was just a rat!"

"Mr Weasley," Dumbledore said calmly. "I assure you that I am not lying, nor would I do so."

"Yes you are!" Ron yelled, getting to his feet. "Scabbers was my rat and Harry stole him! Why would you make him steal Scabbers?"

"Precisely for this reason," Dumbledore replied quickly, cutting off Mrs Weasley's imminent scolding. "I was aware that you would not be very happy so I had Harry use his Cloak to get Scabbers and bring him to me." Ron still looked angry but didn't, or couldn't, say anything. He simply sat back down.

"So, a murderer has been living with us for years?" Mrs Weasley asked frightfully. Dumbledore nodded sadly. Ginny let out a squeak and ran to her father and put her head in his shoulder. It apparently sunk in with Ron because he was looking slightly green along with Percy. Fred and George weren't saying anything and they had blank faces.

"I am extremely sorry that I didn't find out until now," Dumbledore said quietly. "But now the man is out of your house, and you are now safe."

"What's going to happen to him?" Mr Weasley asked.

"Amelia is organising a trial as we speak," Dumbledore replied. "It is likely that he will be in Azkaban for life by this afternoon."

"And Sirius Black?" Mrs Weasley asked.

"He is currently being treated at St. Mungo's and will remain there for at least the remainder of the summer holidays," Dumbledore replied with a smile to Harry. "I will be taking Harry to see him soon."

"Harry?" Ron suddenly asked.

"Yes, Mr Weasley. Harry will be visiting Sirius, as he is Harry's godfather," Dumbledore replied.

"Will the Ministry grant Sirius custody?" Mr Weasley asked. While Harry had only just met Mr Weasley, he did know from Ron that he was involved in some capacity at the Ministry. He wasn't entirely sure in what area, though.

"I have no doubt that they will give Sirius whatever he asks for," Dumbledore replied fiercely. "Cornelius will like the way this whole thing makes him look since he can push all of the blowback onto Barty Crouch."

"That he will," Mr Weasley replied with a thoughtful look. Percy was looking a little annoyed but said nothing.

"I would also like to let you know that the _Daily Prophet_ will very likely be reporting on this either this morning or tomorrow," Dumbledore said, giving the Weasleys a sad look. "No doubt your name will come up. If I were you, Arthur, I would do a press release on the topic. It would be best to get the facts out there on your own terms." Mr Weasley scratched at his chin and nodded.

"I agree," he said sadly. "I'll see what I can do about it as soon as I get in to work."

"Excellent," Dumbledore said before standing abruptly. "Do you mind if we use your Floo?"

"No. Not at all," Mrs Weasley replied. "Thank you Albus and Harry for getting him out of our house."

"It was nothing Mrs Weasley," Harry replied as he stood up. "I just wish I didn't have to do it so secretly."

"Nonsense, dear," Mrs Weasley said, giving Harry a hug. "I understand. Besides, Albus asked you to, so who can blame you?" Harry thought he heard a mumbled "me" from Ron but decided that he wouldn't say or do anything. Harry looked to Luna who still looked upset from what Ron had said to her.

"We must be off," Dumbledore said happily. "If Amelia is to be believed, and I do believe she is, Sirius is extremely eager to see his godson once again."

"Luna," Harry said. The blonde looked up at him with a smile. "When does your father get back?"

"Not until late this afternoon," Luna replied, looking slightly crestfallen.

"Wanna come with us? I don't mind," Harry said. Luna's eyes immediately lit up.

"If it's okay," she said quietly, looking to Dumbledore who was smiling at the both of them.

"So long as Harry wants it, I see no problem," he said happily. "The more the merrier, as they say." Luna got to her feet, smiling.

"Alright. I'll go," she said happily. "I should probably check Mr Black for Wrackspurts anyway. After so long in prison, I imagine his head's full of them."

"There is that too," Dumbledore said warmly as he scooped some Floo powder. "You just need to say 'St. Mungo's Hospital'." Dumbledore turned to the fireplace and was soon gone. Luna went next, followed by Harry who was feeling oddly nervous. He was painfully aware of the fact that Sirius would likely become his guardian soon, and he had never met someone who could be in that position that he could trust and actually cared for him. At the very least, Harry could see that Sirius did seem to care about him. _He's already one up on the Dursleys_.

Harry stumbled out of the fireplace, catching himself at the last minute. Luna grabbed his arm to stop him from falling. Harry smiled at her and began to follow Dumbledore who was walking towards a desk at the front of the room with the word "Reception" floating in midair above a young woman.

"Hello, my name is Sarah," the woman said, barely looking up from a nail file in her hands, sounding intensely bored. "What can I do for you?"

"I am here to inquire where Sirius Black is located," Dumbledore said. Without looking up, Sarah rifled through some pages and found what she needed to.

"Who, may I ask, is inquiring?" she asked curtly, still not looking up.

"Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and Luna Lovegood," Dumbledore replied. Immediately Sarah looked up, her face turning red. She tore her eyes away from Dumbledore and looked at Harry, whose head was only just visible over her desk. Her eyes flickered towards his scar and Harry rolled his eyes, not that she noticed.

"Of course, Professor Dumbledore," Sarah said quickly, stumbling on her words. "He's in, uh, Creature-Induced Injuries I think. First floor. Ward, uh, Seven."

"Thank you very much," Dumbledore said happily before leading Harry and Luna away. They walked a little distance before coming to some stairs. As they walked up, Harry turned to Dumbledore.

"You handled that well, sir. I hate it when people act like that around me," he said. Dumbledore sighed deeply.

"Alas, it is a curse that you and I must bear, Harry," He said sadly. "The curse of celebrity. I know that I am far more equipped to deal with such events then you are, but I do think you will learn to take it in your stride, especially given the years ahead."

"I suppose," Harry sighed. Luna grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze and almost immediately let go. Even though it was a short moment, he felt oddly comforted. "It's just difficult."

"I know, Harry," Dumbledore replied kindly. "I, at least, can remember what it is that made me so famous. You have no such solace."

"I was just a baby and my parents died," Harry said bitterly. Dumbledore simply nodded and continued up the stairs. They soon reached the First Floor and they no longer had to climb stairs. Dumbledore led Harry and Luna past Wards One through Six before they finally found Ward Seven. Dumbledore walked right into the ward, but Harry stopped for a second.

"What's wrong, Harry?" Luna asked, looking at Harry with a strange look.

"What if he … What if he doesn't like me?" Harry asked quietly. Luna smiled.

"Who wouldn't like you?" Luna asked. "Besides, he's your godfather. I don't think you have anything to worry about."

"I suppose you're right, Luna," Harry said grudgingly. He drew a deep breath.

Harry entered the room and found Dumbledore standing at the end of a bed with plain white sheets on it. Harry looked up the bed to see a man sitting up in it, his back against the backboard. He looked to be in terrible shape. His long hair was matted, his beard unkempt and his eyes looked haunted.

"Ah! Sirius," Dumbledore said with a broad smile and a happy tone. "I present your godson. Harry, this is your godfather Sirius."

"Harry," Sirius said, looking straight at Harry. Harry noted that his eyes didn't once stray to his forehead. Harry walked forward towards the side of the bed. As he did, Sirius reached out a hand and cupped Harry's cheek with it. He suddenly looked much younger. "Oh, Merlin. You're real! I was worried that this was a Dementor induced hallucination. Oh, Harry, I'm so sorry."

"Sorry?" Harry asked, confused. Sirius frowned deeply.

"I … I wasn't there for you for your life," Sirius said miserably. "I made a stupid judgement call. I should have never gone after Peter. I should have stayed."

"Sirius," Harry said softly. "I don't blame you. You weren't thinking straight. You're here now. That's all that matters." Harry watched as two tears descended down Sirius' face. Sirius reached out his bony arm and wrapped it around Harry's shoulder, pulling Harry towards him. Harry's heart swelled strangely in a way that he had never felt before. When Sirius let go, his eyes flickered to Luna.

"And who is this lovely young woman?" Sirius asked with an eyebrow raised. Harry smiled.

"This is my friend, Luna Lovegood," Harry introduced as Luna put out her hand. Sirius took her hand and shook it.

"Lovely to meet you, Mr Black," Luna said politely and Sirius groaned.

"Oh, please," Sirius scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Call me Sirius for the love of Merlin. Mr Black was my father and I want nothing to do with that horrid excuse for a human being." Luna laughed.

"Or Padfoot," Harry murmured. Sirius looked at him quizzically.

"How did you learn that name Harry?" he asked quickly. "Have you met Remus?"

"No," Harry replied with a smile. "I just have my ways of knowing these things." Sirius snorted.

"It's Lily all over again but in James' body," he said with a laugh. Dumbledore laughed as Harry smiled shyly.

"I can see that you will make a full recovery, Sirius," Dumbledore laughed. "You have your sense of humour already."

"So, Harry," Sirius smirked. "How did you meet Luna?"

Despite wanting to tell him everything, Harry settled on just telling Sirius the way he met Luna in this time. He told him that he slept at her house, which caused Sirius to burst into laughter, though Harry wasn't entirely sure why. Harry heard Sirius murmur something about Seventh Year but he didn't really catch it.

Harry told Sirius all about his first year at Hogwarts and Luna told him how she was looking forward to it. Harry was happy to see that Sirius was actually interested in everything said. It was far from what the Dursleys were like. And Harry couldn't have been happier for that.

* * *

Luna quite enjoyed talking to Sirius. She was exceptionally happy that he had not made fun of her even once, and just let her talk. Occasionally, Luna would have to explain something because he hadn't read _The Quibbler_ in years. He just let her talk and hugged Harry to him from time to time. Luna wondered if he held on to Harry so tightly because he was afraid to let him go after so long.

Her father had been like that with her for quite a few months after her mother's death. It was as though he was holding on to her because she was the last remnant of his life with her mother. But then, gradually, he became less dependent to the point where he could leave her on her own and go on an expedition by himself for a while. Luna was pleased that he had gotten to that point, but did sometimes miss that closeness. On the nights that she was alone in the house, she always wished that he would be there, hugging her to him tightly and not letting go. That was until the night before when Harry had stayed in the house with her. It made her not feel the need for it any more. Harry's presence made her feel safe, even if they were in separate rooms.

Harry and Sirius were in the middle of discussing Harry's parents when Healer Smythe appeared. She told them all that Sirius was going to be put to sleep until the next morning so that they could run some tests on him that would otherwise be terribly uncomfortable. Sirius hugged Harry tightly once more before Luna, Harry and Professor Dumbledore left the room.

As they were doing so, Luna looked into one of the other beds and saw a brown-haired man seated upright, staring blankly in front of him. His eyes were unblinking and his breathing was very slow. Luna knew immediately what had happened and she lowered her head slightly. She wasn't sure if he was an inmate at Azkaban or not, but she felt bad for him nonetheless.

The three chatted as they walked down the stairs and towards the fireplaces. As they got there, Dumbledore turned to the both of them.

"I shall not be accompanying you back to the Burrow as I have some important business at the Ministry," he said. "I'm sure that Molly will arrange for you to travel to St. Mungo's and see Sirius every few days. I am sure that both you and he would be elated if you would do so. Also, your booklist will be arriving next Wednesday. It is a stroke of luck, for myself and Minerva if no one else, that when I hire Gilderoy, he will only put his own books on the list." Luna and Harry both groaned.

"Can't you get rid of him?" Harry complained. Dumbledore shook his head sadly.

"He is the only applicant," he replied. "There is, regrettably, nothing I can do about it without allowing for the Ministry to choose someone, which could be disastrous."

"Suppose not," Harry mumbled. Luna shared his sentiments about Lockhart based on her new knowledge, but she knew there was little that Dumbledore could do.

"You two should get going now," Dumbledore said while Luna walked forward and took a handful of Floo powder.

"The Burrow!" Luna shouted before she was engulfed by flames and soon came out of the fireplace at the Weasley residence. She was followed soon by Harry, who she grabbed the arm of to keep stable. She was going to have to teach him how to come out of a fireplace properly.

"Luna, dear," Mrs Weasley said, walking out of the kitchen. "Your father dropped by looking for you. He came home earlier than he expected to."

"Thank you, Mrs Weasley," Luna replied, brushing the soot off her clothes. "I'll head home right away."

"I'll come with you if you like," Harry offered. Luna shook her head.

"It's alright," Luna replied with a smile. "I like to talk to Daddy alone after his trips. He has such good stories. Besides, I think you should talk to Ronald."

"Oh. Okay," Harry replied. Luna reached out and gave him a hug before exiting the Burrow and skipping happily towards the Rook. She barely even noticed the trees as she moved swiftly between them. Soon she reached her home and immediately opened the door.

She was greeted by her father with a long hug, his candyfloss-like hair getting in her face. Luna revelled in the feeling of her father's hug. It was just like his old ones.

"How are you, Luna?" her father asked as they broke apart.

"Brilliant, Daddy. I made a new friend," Luna replied. Her father smiled at her, his silvery-grey eyes full of emotion.

"So I heard," he said happily, hugging Luna to him. "Harry Potter. Whatever is he like?"

"He is … modest," Luna replied truthfully. "Harry doesn't like his fame. In fact, he doesn't even like to be noticed much. He was very lonely before Hogwarts. He even stayed with me last night in the guest room so I wouldn't be here on my own."

"Really? I must thank him for being here for you. He was raised by Muggles, was he not?" her father asked, pouring himself a drink. Luna actually scowled, something she rarely did if she had ever done so before.

"Yes. They are terrible to him, Daddy," Luna said angrily. The tone was enough to make her father spill some of his drink. "They put bars on his window."

"Truly?" her father breathed, obviously dumbfounded. "The poor boy."

"Luckily he has his godfather now," Luna said happily. "That's where I was just now. Professor Dumbledore took Harry to see his godfather at St. Mungo's and he wanted me to go with him."

"Professor Dumbledore? St. Mungo's?" her father said, confused. "Isn't his godfather Sirius Black?"

"He's innocent, Daddy," Luna said and her father's eyes widened, something Luna had not seen very often. She went on to explain how Sirius was caught and the truth about what happened.

"Well," her father said when she was finished, putting his goblet away, "it was hardly his fault. He was clearly under attack by Wrackspurts when he was arrested."

"I thought so too," Luna agreed. "But we really won't be able to tell. He's a very nice man, Daddy. He might even let you interview him."

"I don't know darling," her father said indecisively. "We already have so many articles for _The Quibbler_ , I don't know if we would have room for an interview."

"That's okay, Daddy," Luna replied, kissing her father on the cheek. "It was just a thought. So … did you spot any Snorcacks?"

"I thought I did, but he disappeared just as I looked directly at him," her father said disappointedly. "Perhaps that is another of their traits?" He was beginning to sound quite excited.

"Could be, Daddy," Luna said happily. "Did you get any more leads?"

"Well, I met some people who told me that they sighted one in Sweden," her father said, his eyes showing his excitement. "But I don't know when I'll get the time to go there!"

* * *

 _ **2018**_

 _Xenophilius Lovegood leaned back in his Muggle reclining chair, an invention that he thoroughly enjoyed discovering. He looked around the room at all of the pictures. His wall was nearly full of pictures of his family, past and present. He saw one of his beautiful Luna, her husband Rolf and little Lorcan and Lysander just after the twins' birth. Luna and Rolf waved up at him occasionally while the babies gurgled and fidgeted. Xenophilius could only remember one time where his heart had swollen more._

 _He looked to the picture next to it. In it sat a blonde-haired beauty with blue eyes, smiling and cradling a baby girl. His baby girl, Luna. Xenophilius got up out of his chair and walked to the picture on the wall. When he got there, Pandora waved up at him and smiled brightly. He reached out and caressed the picture of his wife, a tear rolling down his slowly wrinkling face._

 _Xenophilius looked around his house. He had lived in this house for four years. He had passed on t_ _he Rook_ _to Luna and Rolf as a wedding present. He decided to buy a home in Ottery St Catchpole so that he wouldn't live so far away._

 _He had also moved his printing press with him as well, continuing the good work of_ The Quibbler _. Despite the fact that he was aging, he wouldn't give up his beloved tabloid. He kept it going with less news of his favourite creatures amd more news from Wizarding Britain. It was going far better than he had ever imagined it would have all those years ago when he started it with Pandora._

 _The reason for_ The Quibbler's _success could be contributed, ironically, to Harry Potter, who had given them an exclusive interview in May of 1998 after Xenophilius had been released from Azkaban. The interview, though important, was rather awkward as he had caused the boy quite a large amount of grief not all that long ago. But Harry had forgiven him, much to the man's delight, and the interview made_ The Quibbler _a strong rival for the diminished_ Daily Prophet _._

 _Despite being forgiven, Xenophilius had never quite forgiven himself for ratting Harry out or for turning on him. He knew that he had the right reasons, but he also knew that he could have gone about it all a lot better. Luna informed him that Harry would have gone to Malfoy Manor and saved her had Xenophilius so much as mentioned it to him._

 _But that was now years past and the wizarding world was back in crisis. Voldemort lived and was wreaking havoc once more. But this time it seemed that he was working alone. Xenophilius had the utmost faith in Harry Potter this time and told himself that he would never rat him out again for any reason._

 _The past few months had been busy for Xenophilius because he had been writing more and more_ Quibblers _in total support of Harry. He knew what it could lead to and fully understood the ramifications. He didn't care. It was what he wanted to do, so he did it._

 _As he walked back to his chair he had to lean over and pick up a toy from the ground. The twins had been around earlier that day. His grandkids never failed to put a smile on Xenophilius' face, and this time was no exception. He smiled and threw the toy into the toy box he had purchased just days after their birth._

 _He was about to sit when there was a knock at his door. He walked to his door and looked through the little peep hole. He saw someone he hadn't seen before. He couldn't be sure that it wasn't a Muggle so he kept his wand in its wrist holster as he opened the door._

" _How may I help you?" Xenophilius asked politely. The man smiled, and it was horrific._

" _Xenophilius Lovegood?" the man asked._

" _That is I," Xenophilius replied and the man smirked. In one motion the man drew a wand and waved it on himself and the man's face morphed. His eyes became red, his nose moved in on his face and became slits and his hair disappeared. Before Xenophilius could get his wand in his hand, he had a wand pointed at him._

"Crucio _!" Voldemort yelled. As soon as the curse hit him, Xenophilius fell to the floor, writhing in pain. He had managed to forget how bad the curse was as he felt the pain of tens of thousands of burning needles stabbing him. All of a sudden the pain stopped but Xenophilius didn't try to get to his feet. "I trust you understand why I'm doing this to you?"_

" _I … Support … Harry Potter," Xenophilius ground out. He saw Voldemort's face contort in anger._

"Crucio _!" Voldemort screamed and Xenophilius started to writhe in pain again. This time, the curse was held much longer, so much so that he actually wanted to die to stop the pain. When it stopped, he could barely move a muscle. "Maybe now you have a different outlook?" Voldemort asked, his laugh filling the room. Xenophilius coughed, causing every muscle in his body to ache._

" _N-never … I … Support … H-Harry … P-Po –" he tried to say, his whole body paining with every word he spoke. The only thing that got him through was the thought of his family._

"AVADA KEDAVRA _!" Voldemort shouted. Xenophilius saw the green light leave the wand of Voldemort and hurtle towards him. That was the last thing he knew._


	7. New Acquaintances

**_D_** ** _isclaimer:_** _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

—CHAPTER SIX—

 _New Acquaintances_

Harry watched Luna disappear into the trees and sighed as she moved out of sight. He turned to Mrs Weasley who was looking at him with a strange look on her face that he couldn't quite decipher.

"Mrs Weasley," Harry began, "could you tell me where Ron is please?"

"As far as I know he's out on our pitch flying," Mrs Weasley replied, her strange look changing into one that made her seem much more motherly. "I really do think you should talk. Ron was just upset about … Well I'm sure you understand."

"I do, Mrs Weasley," Harry assured her, only partially believing what he was saying. "Thank you." Harry made his way out of the house, brushing the soot off his clothes as he walked briskly towards the area set aside for the boys to fly around on their brooms. He had yet to actually do any flying, but Ron had made sure to show him the pitch almost immediately.

As he walked, he wondered exactly why he, in the memory, came to distrust Ron so much. There was no actual moment mentioned other than the times that he left them and returned in their Fourth and what should have been their Seventh Years. He thought that a little jealousy and possessiveness wasn't a terrible crime. There had to be something other than that, and he was frightened about what it was.

He finally approached the clearing and saw Ron flying around in the air doing what looked to Harry very like circles. Not wanting to disturb him, Harry took a sat on the grass and leaned back on a nearby tree. As he watched his best mate fly around above him, he couldn't help but think morbid thoughts about what Ron had done to cause such distrust. The problem was that he couldn't know if Ron would still do it or if he might not if some things changed. It maddened him that he wanted to have Ron be his best friend, but now he knew that it would not be such a wise decision, and there was a part of him that hated it.

At least he knew that Hermione would stay by his side and remain trustworthy. He also now had Luna as well, and even though they had only known each other for a short time, he would trust her with anything. He badly wanted Ron to be by his side like he had been for a year, but he knew that he couldn't do it. He couldn't deny that Ron had been acting less and less like the amazing friend he had known in First Year, but, he couldn't help but feel that same affection for him that he had since Ron entered his carriage on the Hogwarts Express. His mind whirred as Ron descended from the sky, landing just a few metres away from him.

"Why are you here?" Ron asked in an even tone, though Harry could tell that he was still angry.

"Ron, we need to talk," he said. He opened his mouth to say more but he was cut off.

"About what?" Ron asked. "You stole from me."

"Ron can't you see what that rat really was? _Who_ he really was?" Harry asked and Ron seemed to calm, if only slightly.

"Yes I can," he replied in a more even tone. "But you still stole from me."

"I know I did, but can't you see why?" Harry asked. Ron looked angry again.

"No! I can't! Why would you steal instead of come to me and tell me?" Ron asked angrily.

"What would you have said if I came to you and told you that Scabbers was the man who betrayed my parents and got them killed?" Harry asked with an edge to his tone. Ron paled slightly.

"I … I would have believed you," Ron said falteringly. Harry shook his head.

"I don't think you would have, Ron," Harry said. "You would have called me 'mental' or 'barmy' and not even thought about giving me Scabbers." Ron was silent for some time.

"I guess you're right," Ron replied. "But why couldn't Dumbledore come to me?"

"What would you have done if Dumbledore, a man you've _actually_ called barmy and mental before, came to you with that same request?" Harry asked with a slightly amused tone. Ron's lips twitched upwards slightly.

"Okay, okay," he said. "But it just hurts that you stole from me."

"I know, Ron," Harry replied. "And I am sorry for that. But look at everything that happened because of it. I saved a man from years in Azkaban, I got the right man sent there _and_ I got a godfather." Ron looked slightly guilty when Harry said all that.

"It sounds different when you say it like that," Ron conceded quietly. "It's not like you took him to hurt me."

"Exactly," Harry said, clapping Ron on the shoulder. "Besides, I'll buy you a pet when we go to Diagon Alley. How about that?" Harry did feel as though he owed Ron something, but he also wanted to make sure that he was on Ron's good side if he was going to have to share a room with him until the end of August. Ron's eyes lit up at the suggestion.

"You'd do that?" he asked.

"I was the one who took away your rat," Harry replied. "It's only fair."

For the rest of the day, both of them were much friendlier with each other and it felt like old times. From time to time, Harry could feel the thoughts creeping up on him about not trusting Ron as much, but he pushed them away. He would deal with them another time. For right now, Ron was his friend, and that's how it would stay.

That night, he received a letter back from Hermione which he quickly opened and read.

 _Dear Harry,_

 _I wondered why you weren't returning my letters! I didn't really know what a House Elf was so I did some research and they sound suspiciously like slaves. You told me that Dobby works for you now? That means you have a slave Harry! You can't think that's right._

 _It was good of The Weasleys to let you stay there for the rest of the holidays. I'm glad you had a place to go. Of course, I'm sure you could have stayed here, but you probably like it better there. My family can be boring, and I'm sure the Weasleys have more interesting magical objects and knowledge as well._

 _This Luna girl you met sounds very interesting. I've heard about_ The Quibbler _before, and it sounds very strange, but if you like Luna I'm sure I will too. It was nice of you to stay with her while she was on her own, but I expect nothing less from you. You are the type of person who would do that and more, even for people you don't know._

 _My parents are going to take me to Diagon Alley on Wednesday next week, assuming we get our booklists by then, of course. Should they really be taking this long? Perhaps Professor Dumbledore is having trouble finding a replacement for Quirrell. Anyway, maybe we could meet up then? I really hope we can. I want to introduce you to my parents. I'm not really sure they believe that I have a friend, let alone one like you._

 _I think I should tell you, so you are prepared, that I've told my parents about everything that happened in the last year, including the troll and the third floor corridor. I don't like to keep secrets from them. Mum and Dad both went a little crazy at the idea of me being attacked by a troll but I explained the circumstances and they are consenting to me continuing on at Hogwarts. I was a little worried for a while there._

 _Have you done your homework yet? I got it all done in the first two weeks, myself. If you want to, I can look over some of yours for you if you send it with Hedwig. Anyway, I have to go for lunch. I'll get Hedwig to take this letter right now._

 _Hermione_

Harry put down the letter, thinking only one thing. Hermione hadn't once mentioned Ron by name in the entire letter. He found that interesting because she was Ron's friend too, and she knew that he was staying at the Burrow with Ron. Harry went downstairs to ask Mrs Weasley when they were going to Diagon Alley. She informed him that they were going the same day as Hermione so he wrote a letter back to Hermione telling her that he would see her then. He also told her that he would love to meet her family and that he didn't think for even a second that they were boring.

The next day, Mrs Weasley let Harry use the Floo to go and visit Sirius, which he was immensely grateful for. He spent a good two hours with his godfather until Sirius was told that he had to go to sleep again for more tests.

It was on the second day that Harry got a surprise as he walked into the ward where Sirius was staying. He stopped at the door as he heard the sound of two voices laughing.

"Oh, Merlin, Padfoot," a strangely voice said after the laughter. "I can't believe Prongs was that stupid." Harry immediately knew that they were talking about his father and stood, rooted to the spot, wondering why his father was stupid.

"I know, Moony," Harry heard Sirius say. _Well that's Remus then_ , Harry thought with a small smile. "Five detentions _and_ forty house points taken away! And in First Year too!" Harry laughed at that, thinking of his loss of fifty points and detention in the Forbidden Forest in his first year. He swiftly made his way into the room as Sirius and Remus laughed together again. Sirius apparently caught sight of Harry because he stopped laughing. Remus looked towards where Sirius was looking and he broke into a smile.

"Harry," Remus breathed as he stood from where he was sitting on the bed. "You look so much like your father."

"In looks alone, Moony, I assure you," Sirius said. "The little bugger got Lily's personality. Probably worse than if he got his father's, come to think of it." Remus laughed.

"If he's as stubborn as she was then yeah, I have to agree," he said before looking back to Harry. "You can't imagine how good it is to see you, Harry."

"I guess not," Harry replied, shaking his hand. "It's good to meet you. How did you know to see Sirius?" Remus sighed.

"I read about it in _The Daily Prophet_ ," Remus replied. "I would have come yesterday but … I wasn't sure I would be welcomed to be honest." Sirius scoffed.

"Bloody idiot," Sirius said. "It's not your fault you saw what we wanted everyone to see. All I can say is that I'm glad you didn't find me that night. I'm sure your instincts would have kicked in." Harry knew what Sirius was talking about but said nothing as Remus paled.

"Yeah, that's probably true …" Remus said sadly. There was silence for a few seconds. "How was your First Year, Harry?" Remus asked suddenly and Sirius laughed a barking laugh.

"Hey, you mutt," Harry said in mock-anger. "It wasn't funny." Sirius laughed again. "Fine. But you let me tell it."

"Aww," Sirius said, pouting. "No fun."

"Too bad," Harry said before looking back to Remus and telling him all about his First Year and his holidays. Remus was amazed at everything Harry got up to at Hogwarts in just one year. That discussion took up quite a bit of time and by the time he finished, he was told that he had to leave so he and Remus left together.

The following Wednesday, just as Dumbledore had speculated, the booklists arrived and were chock full of books by the egomaniacal ponce, Gilderoy Lockhart. Harry groaned as he opened the letter, as did Ron and the twins. It seemed that Percy was under the impression that Lockhart was, in fact, as amazing as his books claimed. As was Mrs Weasley who was practically bursting with joy the moment she saw them, though she seemed to be cured of that when she realised exactly how much the books were going to cost considering she had to buy five sets of them. Harry offered to help pay for them, seeing as he was spending his holidays there, but Mrs Weasley would not hear of it.

Harry did insist on buying them some more Floo powder after he had used quite a lot of it going to St Mungo's almost every day. When he did, he would either be there with Sirius or both Sirius and Remus. Harry found that he really enjoyed his time with both men. He could absolutely see why his parents were so close to them. Remus had yet to actually tell Harry that he was a werewolf, but Harry didn't mind too much about that. That would come in time.

Luckily for Harry, Ron was back to being a friend again. He was even coming around in regards to calling Luna by her actual name and not "Loony". He and Ron also played a rather large amount of Quidditch with the twins, which was always fun. Though, they mostly played with each of them getting one of the twins. Whenever he and Ron played on one team, the twins always seemed to slaughter them. Harry wasn't quite sure if that was because they were too good as a team or because they were cheating somehow.

Harry was glad to have Luna come over regularly. He really did love Quidditch but he knew that there was such a thing as too much Quidditch, though this concept was entirely lost on Ron. He, and Ron if he was in a good mood, would have discussions with Luna and, occasionally, Ginny. Harry was also pleased to play a few magic-based games with them that he had never played before.

The time flew by while Harry was staying at the Burrow and it soon came to the Wednesday that they planned to go into Diagon Alley. Harry actually had to be woken up that morning, surprisingly by Luna. He woke with a start as Luna leapt onto his stomach, laying across him. Luna was giggling.

"Wake up sleepyhead," she said in a sing-song voice and Harry groaned. She giggled again. "It's not that bad. We're going to Diagon Alley today."

"Oh. You're going too?" Harry asked. Luna nodded as she got off of him.

"Daddy was going to take me, but he's got caught up with other things," Luna explained and Harry felt kind of bad for her. "So Mrs Weasley said I could come with all of you."

"Sounds good," Harry said with a groan as he stood up and stretched. "I've just gotta have a shower and I'll be down, alright?"

"Alright," Luna said as she walked to the door. "But don't be too long or the breakfast'll be gone." Harry groaned, knowing full well that she was absolutely right given the way Ron ate. Harry had a quick shower, got dressed and raced downstairs to find Mrs Weasley cooking and Luna smirking, something that the girl rarely did. "Oops," Luna said innocently. "Did I forget to tell you that Mrs Weasley was cooking more? My mistake. I blame the Wrackspurts."

Harry couldn't help but smile as he sat down next to Luna and got stuck into the bacon and eggs Mrs Weasley had prepared. When he was finished, Mrs Weasley left the kitchen to find where Ginny and the twins were, leaving Harry and Luna alone.

"Harry," Luna said in a hushed whisper. "I think we should keep an eye out for Colin while we're in Diagon Alley. It's a long shot but he may just be there as well. It'll make things a lot easier if we talk to him today."

"You're right," Harry replied in an equally hushed whisper. "This could actually work well. We can tell him to look for us on the train. And it might be smart not to tell him my name. Maybe he'll like me before he knows who I am." Luna nodded and was about to say something more but Mrs Weasley came back into the kitchen.

"Alright then, you two," she said quickly. "We're ready to go. Have you got the lists?" Harry and Luna both just nodded and Mrs Weasley smiled. They got up and entered the living room where the rest of the Weasley family, including Mr Weasley who had taken the day off, were waiting to go through the fireplace.

* * *

Luna watched as Harry disappeared through the fireplace and quickly scooped up some Floo powder of her own and headed right through. Seeing as they were the first two to go through she found Harry, who had come out of a grate a short distance away. They both watched as the Weasleys all came out of several different grates before everyone grouped together.

"Is everyone here?" Mr Weasley asked quickly before doing a headcount. "Excellent! We just have to make a quick stop in Gringotts before we get into shopping. We also have to find the Grangers."

"They told me that they would wait in the Leaky Cauldron," Luna heard Harry say from her side. Mrs Weasley nodded her head.

"Arthur can go and find them," she replied. Luna was slightly amused to see Mr Weasley's face light up at the thought of meeting actual Muggles. He nodded and swiftly scurried off in the direction of the old pub. Mrs Weasley turned back to the group. "Percy, Ron, Fred, George. You can have a look around in some of the shops but you have to be outside Gringotts in half an hour. I'll take Ginny with me because she's never been into Gringotts before."

The twins and Ronald shared a knowing look while Percy looked slightly put out. Luna knew that the twins and Ronald were planning to go into the Quidditch supplies shop. She didn't know why they liked to go there given that they would likely not be able to buy the things they wanted. Luna only liked to shop for things she absolutely needed.

They reached the large, white building and entered quickly. Luna smiled as she saw all of the faithful goblins working tirelessly. Despite the bad things people often thought about goblins, Luna admired them and always liked to see them hard at work, even if they didn't particularly like the looks she gave them.

A goblin called Gornuk took the group down to the vaults, stopping first at the Lovegood Vault which was closest. Luna quickly tossed enough money into the money pouch her father had given her and then some. Gornuk then took them to the Weasley vault which was definitely less full than Luna's, though she figured her father earned quite a bit from his business.

She then was taken deeper still down to the Harry's vault which held the most gold Luna had ever seen. There were piles of the stuff. But her eyes strayed from the gold and saw that Harry was trying his best to keep the true amount from the eyes of Mrs Weasley and Ginevra. Luna found this endearing and smiled at him, though she didn't think he actually saw her, as he took about the same amount out that she had.

They all quickly entered the cart one more time and ascended from the depths back to the bank. They all exited the cart and Luna turned to Gornuk who was moving to leave.

"I love those cart rides. Thank you, honoured Gornuk," she said seriously, with a slight bow. "You were most helpful and hospitable. I would like to offer you a piece of advice. Beware Minister Fudge." Gornuk's shocked look changed very swiftly to a strange, evil looking smile.

"We always are," was all he said before turning and leaving through the door to the bank. Luna followed, knowing that she was receiving stares from Harry, Ginevra and Mrs Weasley behind her. They did follow pretty quickly though.

"What was that about, Luna?" Harry asked as Luna and he exited the doors to Gringotts.

"Oh. I just believe that we should be nicer to our goblin neighbours," Luna replied. "We have done so much wrong by them."

"And what did you mean about Fudge?" Harry asked. Luna blinked.

"He eats goblins, of course," she replied as she walked towards where she could see Ronald, Fred and George standing with Percy nearby. "Didn't you know?"

"Uh ... No I didn't," Harry admitted and Luna was not really surprised.

"Not all that many people know about it," she said sadly. "Daddy has contacts in the Ministry who have told him, but he won't print it unless he has more proof." Luna truly did believe that. Her father was a very honourable and trustworthy person.

"Alright now," Mrs Weasley said as she approached her four sons. "Where to first?"

"Oh, mother," Percy said before the others could say anything. "I saw a notice out the front of Flourish and Blotts. Gilderoy Lockhart is signing books." Mrs Weasley suddenly looked very excited while Luna and Harry groaned.

"Well then," Mrs Weasley said happily, putting an arm around Ginevra. "We'll go there straight away," Luckily, as she said that, Mr Weasley came wandering towards where they were standing, locked in what looked like a very intriguing conversation with a man and a woman. The man was not quite as tall as Mr Weasley and had brown hair. He also was sporting a slight beard as well. The woman had bushy, black hair. They were both in Muggle apparel. Walking nearby the woman was a girl with bushy brown hair. Somehow, Luna knew instantly that she was looking at Hermione Granger. Mr Weasley looked towards them.

"Isn't that lucky?" he said loudly. Hermione turned her attention to the family in front of her and her face lit up and she ran to Harry, flinging herself into his arms.

"How are you Harry?" she asked excitedly as she let go of him.

"I'm fantastic," Harry replied. "How have you been?"

"Not too bad," she replied before her eyes moved to Luna. "You must be Luna Lovegood. I'm Hermione Granger." She extended her hand and Luna took it.

"Nice to meet you," Luna said with a large smile.

"Oi!" Ronald said from behind Hermione. "Forget someone?"

"Hello Ron," Hermione said in a strangely emotionless voice. Although it appeared that Ronald didn't notice as he smiled and began to talk amicably to Hermione who obviously didn't want to talk to him at all. She soon interrupted him.

"Harry," Hermione suddenly said, grabbing Harry's arm and pulling him to her parents. "These are my parents, Steven and Cheryl Granger. Mum, Dad, this is Harry Potter."

"It's nice to finally meet you, Harry," Mrs Granger said with a smile. "Hermione has told us many good things about you." Harry blushed at that.

"Yes. Hermione really talks about you quite a bit," Mr Granger said, which made Harry's blush deepen which, in turn, made Luna have to stifle a giggle.

"It's very nice to meet you Mr and Mrs Granger," Harry said.

"We should get going," Mrs Weasley said quickly. "We don't want to miss Gilderoy Lockhart." Hermione let out a small squeal.

"We get to meet _him_?" she asked excitedly. "He wrote nearly the _entire_ booklist. Oh, I can't wait." Luna felt quite bad for Hermione. She really wanted to expose Lockhart right then and there, but she knew that she couldn't at that moment, so she silently walked to Flourish and Blotts with Harry at her side.

The bookshop was completely packed with people, mainly witches Luna noticed. Mrs Weasley quickly formed a path through the people and, somehow, they ended right up the front very close to where there was a raised platform with a single table with many books on it. They stood there for about two minutes, scrunched together, before Lockhart made his way in. He wore a blue robe and had a pointed hat sat upon his wavy hair. As he entered, the women in the crowd swooned and Luna nearly snorted. A cameraman stepped up behind Ronald.

"Get out of the way," he snarled. "This is for the Daily Prophet!"

"Big deal," Ronald said. Lockhart apparently heard him because he looked sharply at Ronald. But when he did he also caught sight of Harry. Luna could see a glint in his blue eyes.

"It can't be … Harry Potter," he murmured, though he quieted the crowd with his words. Lockhart quickly reached forward and pulled Harry roughly on to the platform as the crowd applauded. He leaned over and Luna watched him whisper something in Harry's ear. Harry looked annoyed and whispered something back to which Lockhart's smile faltered slightly but he nodded.

They both smiled, though Harry's smile was decidedly forced, at the cameraman who took a photo with a large flash and causing smoke around the area around the front row. Luna watched as Harry, obviously uncomfortable, smiled along with Lockhart, who now had an arm around his shoulders.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he said loudly, waving for quiet. "What an extraordinary moment this is! The perfect moment for me to make a little announcement I've been sitting on for some time!

"When young Harry here stepped into Flourish and Blotts today, he only wanted to buy my autobiography, which I shall, of course, be happy to present to him and all of his friends now, free of charge, along with my full works." The crowd applauded again. "He had no idea that he would shortly be getting much, much more than my book, _Magical Me_. He and his schoolmates will, in fact, be getting the _real_ magical me. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I take great pleasure and pride in announcing that this September I will be taking up the post of Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!" The crowd cheered and clapped as a wizard appeared carrying a full set of Lockhart's books. The man asked Harry something and Luna heard Harry say, "Eight".

The same man motioned for something and a few others came with their arms full. Harry walked towards Mrs Weasley and pointed to Luna, Hermione, Ronald, Ginevra, Percy, Fred, George and Percy who all got given a set of the books and Mrs Weasley looked absolutely ecstatic.

They left Flourish and Blotts quickly and without incident after that. But as they were leaving, Luna heard something which made her stop in her tracks.

"Colin? Isn't that the man who wrote nearly all the books you need?" a woman's voice asked. Luna looked over and saw a small boy with mousy hair with a woman with long blonde hair. There was also a younger boy with the same mousy hair, though he looked subdued or even frightened. The first boy, Colin, Luna assumed, looked _very_ excited. Luna nudged Harry slightly, though he had apparently heard too. Mrs Weasley chose that moment to look behind her.

"Is everything alright dears?" she asked. Luna nodded along with Harry.

"Yes, Mrs Weasley," Harry replied. "I was just wondering if Luna and I could stay for a few minutes and look around. I didn't really get a good look when I came here last year."

"Of course," Mrs Weasley said with a smile. "We were all going to split up anyway. Just make sure you meet us at the Floo grates at about one. We'll be heading home for lunch then."

"Will do Mrs Weasley," Harry said. Just then, Hermione looked to her parents.

"Can I go with Harry and Luna and look at the books please?" she asked in a pleading tone. Her parents both chuckled.

"Of course," Mr Granger said. "I think Arthur wanted us to answer a few questions anyway."

"You have your money dear?" Mrs Granger asked and Hermione nodded furiously. "Remember what I said. No more than ten Galleons on books. You need to buy your other stuff too."

"Thank you Mum," Hermione said, hugging both her parents. Luna looked behind her and saw Colin enter the bookstore. Hermione then grabbed one arm of both Luna and Harry, pulling them in. Luna heard Ronald snort behind her.

Luna, Harry and Hermione looked at a variety of books, with Hermione choosing three and Harry choosing two, Luna noticed. Luna and Harry made sure to keep close to Colin in the hopes that he would say something that would need explaining to a Muggle-born. Luckily, just as they were ready to leave the store, Luna heard him say something.

"What's a Hufflepuff?" Colin asked excitedly, looking at a book about the most successful Hufflepuffs of all time with an intrigued look.

"I'm not sure, honey, but I don't really think you need it," the woman said kindly, taking the book from a disappointed Colin and putting it back on the shelf. Luna felt an elbow in her side coming from Harry so she walked towards Colin.

"I'm sorry," she said and Colin and the woman looked at her. "Did you ask what Hufflepuff is?"

"Yeah," Colin replied happily. "D'you know what it is?"

"Of course," Luna replied airily. "Hufflepuff is one of the Houses at Hogwarts."

"Houses?" Colin asked and the woman sighed.

"You remember Professor McGonagall telling you about the Houses," she said exasperatedly. Colin looked sheepish.

"Yeah," he replied, a bit subdued. "But she never mentioned what they were called."

"Well," Luna cut in, noticing that Hermione looked slightly put out. "You get sorted into a House when you get to Hogwarts and you stay there for the duration of your time at Hogwarts. Each house is represented by a number of qualities, but most people think about one main one for each. Hufflepuffs are loyal, Ravenclaws are smart, Gryffindors are brave and Slytherins are cunning." Luna could see Colin's eyes light up.

"I hope I'm in Gryffindor!" he said, nearly bouncing on the spot.

"What's your name, dear?" the woman asked kindly.

"Luna Lovegood," Luna replied serenely. "I'll be in First Year as well."

"Well then, I'm Emma Creevey and these are my sons Colin and Dennis," Mrs Creevey said with a smile. "Colin's going to Hogwarts this year and Dennis will be in two years himself."

"It's lovely to meet you all," Luna said. Dennis seemed to cling to his mother as Luna looked to Colin. "I've got to go, but you should look for me and my friends," Luna pointed to Harry and Hermione who were watching on, "on the train. I think we'll sit near the back. I like the back."

"Okay!" Colin said excitedly. "I'll do that. See you then!" Luna nodded and turned back to Harry and Hermione. Hermione looked curious, but Harry was smiling knowingly.

"What was that about?" Hermione asked. Luna smiled.

"He's a Muggle-born," she explained. "I thought he could use a friend." Hermione's eyes softened and she nodded.

"So," Harry began as they exited Flourish and Blotts and headed to the other shops, "what's his name?" It was all Luna could do not to laugh.

The rest of the trip in Diagon Alley was rather uneventful, though Luna was absolutely fascinated by the apothecary. Harry and Hermione didn't seem to like it much, but Luna loved it. There were all sorts of things around the place. She had to admit that it didn't smell overly pleasant, but she was completely engrossed in seeing all of the ingredients for potions as well as some of the more dangerous and exotic plants.

They all finished up rather quickly and soon caught up with everyone else near the Floo grates. Hermione's parents were still locked in conversation with Mr Weasley, though they turned to talk to Hermione when they spotted her.

"Did you have fun?" Mrs Granger asked and Hermione nodded very quickly.

"I got everything that I needed, including new robes, and I also got three books," she said quickly. "We even had time for ice cream at Florean Fortescue's. Harry bought them for us."

"That's nice," Mr Granger said, looking to a watch on his wrist. "But we should get going. We have to be back at the practice soon. Say goodbye to your friends." Hermione nodded and turned to Harry and Luna.

"Thank you very much Harry," Hermione said, giving him a hug. "I had a great day. It was very nice meeting you, Luna. I hope we can be good friends."

"I'm sure we will," Luna said with a smile. "As long as the Wrackspurts don't get to you." Hermione looked at her in confusion. Luna was about to tell her about Wrackspurts but Harry spoke.

"Luna can tell you about those later," he said quickly, smiling in Luna's direction. "Have a good few weeks. I'll write as often as I can."

"Okay Harry," Hermione said and turned to leave. Ronald then coughed loudly and Hermione turned around. "Goodbye Ron. Have a good holiday. Don't forget your homework." Ronald groaned but nodded. Hermione then waved goodbye and she and her parents left the group.

"Interesting people," Mr Weasley said suddenly. "I had the most intriguing talks with them."

"I'm sure you did, dear," Mrs Weasley said. "Well then, all of you. Let's get back."

* * *

 _ **2016**_

 _Gilderoy Lockhart had spent fourteen years in St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries on the Fourth Floor in the Janus Thickey ward, not that he could remember why. All he remembered was being in a strange dungeon-like place many, many years ago and being rescued by a scarlet and gold bird, a black-haired boy and two red heads, one boy and one girl. He didn't know why he needed rescuing or even why he couldn't get out himself. It was very much like an insane dream._

 _On the topic of dreams, Gilderoy often had strange dreams about himself, but he was always doing dastardly things like erasing a poor, ugly old woman's memory. He also had dreams where he was a huge celebrity and everyone loved him. They were strangely realistic dreams, but he knew that they weren't real because he had no recollection of such things ever happening. He could really only remember being cared for in a hospital._

 _But when he had been told that he was a wizard, boy that was exciting. He thought it was preposterous to begin with, but he quickly came to accept it and, soon, he was being trained to be a wizard, apparently for the second time. At least according to his Healer. Of course, he had to try very hard to remember things. His memory was terrible._

 _But fourteen years later, Gilderoy was finally being released back into the world and he finally felt free again. He had his wand clutched in his hand and a brand new robe on his back. The ministry had provided everything that he needed, including a fully-furnished house. He didn't really understand why this was, but Kingsley Shacklebolt, the Minister, had said that he deserved a second chance. For the life of him, Gilderoy couldn't work out why he needed, let alone deserved, a second chance. That was the first thing that got Gilderoy wondering exactly why he couldn't remember anything past mid-1992._

 _That was Gilderoy's primary goal once he finally left St Mungo's. To discover his past. He didn't really know why, but he felt that it was important for him to know. He wanted to know what he had done._

 _It was a slight surprise when the time came for him being escorted out of St Mungo's. He had an Auror escort, some black-haired man by the name of Harry Potter, but there was really no one else. None of the Healers even turned up to say goodbye. Gilderoy was rather hurt by that. He felt that he had touched the lives of at least some of the workers at the hospital, but apparently he hadn't._

 _When they reached the outside of the hospital, Harry Potter turned to Gilderoy and handed him a quill._

" _This will activate when you say the word 'home'," the Auror explained. "It will take you to your home and you can do what you like from there."_

" _Thank you," Gilderoy said sincerely. "Home."_

 _It hadn't taken Gilderoy very long to discover exactly what he had done to warrant the treatment he received. He went to Flourish and Blotts, a bookshop in Diagon Alley and asked the clerk to point him towards anything about Gilderoy Lockhart. The clerk smirked and pointed him in the direction of a bookshelf with titles devoted to him._

Break With A Banshee _._ Travels With Trolls _._ Magical Me _. All of those books had a moving picture of a younger him on the front. Gilderoy smiled to himself, thinking that he must have been quite the wizard to have done those things and written an autobiography. But his eyes soon fell on a title that made him sick._

Gilderoy Lockhart, A Fraud and a Fiend _by Rita Skeeter_ _filled most of the shelf. There was, as usual with these books, a picture of him on the front. Gilderoy slowly picked it up and read the blurb on the back._

You've all heard of the tales of one amazing wizard, Gilderoy Lockhart. He's spent a year with a yeti, taken a break with a banshee, travelled with trolls, went on voyages with vampires and even gadded with ghouls. He even has a vast knowledge of household pests. But is what you read in his autobiography, _Magical Me_ , actually the truth? What skeletons lurk in Gilderoy's cupboard? Why has he disappeared from the public light? What does Harry Potter have to do with it? Rita Skeeter attempts to answer all these questions or more. There will be twists, turns, shocks and more. You will be both amazed and disgusted by the wizard known as Gilderoy Lockhart.

 _Gilderoy's hands were shaking as he read the blurb and thought of the implications of the whole book. He wanted to flee the store, screaming for his life and his hands held in the air in defeat, but he knew that he owed it to himself to purchase the book and read it for himself, if only to find out what he had done._

 _So he took the book to the clerk and paid for it. Luckily with his aging face he was not recognised. He returned to his home as quickly as he could and opened to the very first page and began to read. To begin with, the book wasn't that bad. But as he read on it became harder and harder to read. He was persistent, however, so he read on despite the almost constant sinking feeling in his stomach. By the end of the book he knew what had happened. And he wished that he didn't._

 _Gilderoy sat the book down on the table beside him and picked up his firewhiskey, downing it very quickly. He felt sickened that he could ever have tried to do that to anyone, let alone two twelve year old students who were meant to be in his care. And at the expense of an eleven year old girl as well. It was unthinkable!_

 _And so, Gilderoy continued to drink. He was disgusted in himself for what he had done. He was disgusted that no one had told him earlier. But most of all he was amazed that Harry Potter had consented to be his Auror guard at the hospital despite their past. Gilderoy Lockhart, alone and unloved, sat in his Ministry paid-for house in his Ministry paid-for reclining chair and silently toasted Harry Potter, without even knowing the man's true story. He was just another name in a book._


	8. The Hogwarts Express

**_D_** ** _isclaimer:_** _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

—CHAPTER SEVEN—

 _The Hogwarts Express_

Sirius Black detested having to be cooped up in St. Mungo's for a whole month. There was just something about the situation that didn't exactly scream "free" to him. The Healers checked on him nearly every hour, sometimes more than once. While it was certainly a massive step up from Azkaban, he just wanted to get out, burn Grimmauld Place to the ground and buy a new place to start his life over. He wanted to feel the openness again.

The only real bright moments of his days were Remus and Harry's visits to him. Sirius was actually rather surprised that Harry had taken such a liking to him given how badly he had screwed up back in 1981.

While he was in Azkaban he had felt guilt but it was absolutely nothing compared to what he had felt the first time he saw Harry. Partly it was guilt over what he did, but he also felt guilty because he hadn't thought that Harry was as he should have been. He was skinny, short and shy, and he didn't like it. He was sure that neither James nor Lily had ever been that small, and neither of them had ever been anywhere near as timid or shy as Harry had, even when meeting new people.

Sirius was aware that something had happened to Harry, he could tell that much just by looking at him, but he still wasn't sure exactly what it was. Harry had mentioned not growing up in the magical world, but he had never said where. Sirius knew that Lily had a Muggle sister, though he wasn't sure of her name, and he had heard about her hatred of all things magical. This was Sirius' best guess and it wasn't one that he particularly liked.

He tried not to dwell on that, however. Harry had come to be far less shy, and Remus had told him that he was probably only like that originally because of nerves. Meeting his godfather for the first time, especially someone who had been close to his family, was undoubtedly a nerve-wracking moment. He also tried to tell Sirius that Harry didn't look too unhealthy, and Sirius had to grudgingly admit that he might not be the best judge as he had built up an image of Harry in his mind which was mostly just James.

Despite all of that, he was absolutely stoked to be able to finally feel happy again. The first time he truly felt happy after leaving that hell-hole was when he saw Harry for the first time. Once the guilt cleared, that was. It was a strange feeling after so many years, and Sirius found that he still liked it very much.

He swung his legs off the hospital bed and let his feet touch the floor. He was wearing proper clothes for the first time in nearly eleven years. He had on jeans and a plain red shirt. He felt a little strange at first, but found that it was nice to wear something other than the prison clothes he had been wearing.

Sirius reached out to the table beside his bed as he stood up and grabbed a hold of his new wand that had been made by Mr Ollivander per the request of Cornelius Fudge. His first wand had been snapped when he was thrown in Azkaban, but he found that he didn't really miss it. His new wand actually worked better for him than the old one ever had.

Sirius flicked the wand and made the bed for the staff. It was really the least he could do, given how hard he was on all of them. He turned around and was about to exit the ward when he was face to face with a smiling Albus Dumbledore.

"I see you are now fully recovered, Sirius," Albus said happily. Sirius smiled, something he had missed while in the prison.

"Damn right I am," Sirius said happily. "What can I do for you, Albus?"

"I would just like to inquire about how your Occlumency barriers are after so long in Azkaban," Albus replied, surprising Sirius.

"Uh … I haven't had them tested, but I've had a lot of time to work on them," he replied, wondering where the old man was going with this.

"Do you mind if I test them, then?" Albus asked. Sirius thought for a moment and then shrugged. What harm could it be? It was Albus Dumbledore, after all. Soon after nodding his assent, Sirius felt a presence in his mind and could feel them trying to bring up certain memories. Sirius' defences were far enough progressed that he could tell what the person was looking for and he was relieved to find that Albus was only looking for memories pertaining to Harry in the past month. After about three minutes, the presence left him and Albus nodded. "Excellent. I will be visiting Remus soon, and I will ask the both of you to be at Hogwarts tomorrow at around four o'clock."

"What for?" Sirius asked quickly and Albus just smiled, his eyes twinkling.

"I cannot tell you at this moment, but rest assured, it is a revelation not to be missed," Albus said cryptically before turning and leaving the room. Sirius blinked at the doorway for only a minute before shaking his head.

 _I have to get to the Burrow_ , Sirius thought as he looked at a clock. _The train leaves in only three hours_.

* * *

For the first time in a very long time, Remus Lupin was having an exceptional month. At least in comparison with the ten years he had gone through beforehand. Everything just seemed to be getting better with Sirius being let out of Azkaban and being declared innocent. Over the years, Remus had wondered how and why Sirius had ended up betraying James and Lily. It just didn't fit, and yet it was the only answer. Now he knew it wasn't true and he couldn't see any way that he could be happier.

Remus had been bitten at a very young age by the absolutely sadistic werewolf, Fenrir Greyback, because of some deal that his father had failed to live up to. Because of that, Remus only really trusted one person in his life and that was his mother. While his father was supportive of his being a werewolf, and even went so far as to try and find a cure, he was still the one who had caused it, even if he didn't realise it was going to happen before it did.

On the other hand, his mother was with him before and after the transformations and held him close. As a child, it was that feeling of closeness that made him love his mother more. She was always there to help heal him and help deal with the pain, both physical and emotional. In a way, Remus was tossed right in the deep end in his life.

Then they found out that he could go to Hogwarts. Dumbledore was making plans to allow it to happen. It was an absolute dream come true for Remus to be able to be a relatively normal kid. It even made the thought of going through transformations without his mother somehow bearable.

Even with all of the excitement, Remus was worried about making friends, but that all changed when he set foot on the Hogwarts Express. That was where he met James, Sirius and Peter. For so many years, he called all three of them his best friends, yet he kept his lycanthropy a secret from them. It was just not acceptable in the wider community. Oh, how Remus panicked when they told him that they had discovered his secret.

Then something amazing happened. They accepted it and even looked into ways of helping him. They all became Animagi and snuck out every full moon and stayed with him. When they first told him their plan, Remus felt a strange feeling in his chest, much like what he felt when his mother held him close as a child.

And then everything came crashing down. James was killed. Sirius betrayed him and killed Peter. Sirius was carted off to Azkaban immediately and Remus was forgotten. The only person that stayed in contact with him at all after the war was Albus. Remus fell into a very deep depression and stayed away from pretty much everything and everyone for many years.

The only thing that kept him going was the thought that James and Lily's son was still out there. Not that he would ever go near the boy, as it was far too dangerous to do so, but it was good to know that Harry, at the very least, still lived.

Not long after he read about Sirius in _The Daily Prophet_ , Albus came to his house, asking him why he had not visited his old friend. Remus explained that he didn't think Sirius would understand that he had mistrusted him. Albus had actually laughed at that, and told him just to go and see Sirius. He even intimated that he might even get to see Harry for the first time since that Halloween. He was eternally grateful that Albus had shown up at his door that day.

Remus stood in his apartment and walked to the sink where he poured himself a glass of water. Just as he took the first sip, he heard a knock on the door, which he promptly answered to find Albus Dumbledore.

"May I come in Remus?" Albus asked politely.

"Of course, Albus," Remus said. "Would you like a drink?"

"No thank you," Albus said as he looked around the room. "I shan't be here long. I was just wondering how your Occlumency barriers are." Remus was surprised but didn't show it as he took a sip of water.

"They're there, but I haven't really had to use them in a long time," Remus replied. "Why do you ask?"

"Chalk it up to intrigue," Albus replied cryptically. "Would you mind terribly if I test them?"

"Go ahead," Remus replied. If there was one man in the world Remus felt he could trust implicitly it would be Albus Dumbledore. Within seconds he felt a presence in his mind rummaging around. A moment later, the presence was gone and Dumbledore was smiling brightly, his blue eyes twinkling wildly.

"Excellent," He said happily. "Now that I've done that, I would like to invite you to Hogwarts tomorrow afternoon at four o'clock to discuss something. Sirius will be there also."

"May I ask what this is about?" Remus asked.

"I'm afraid that will have to wait until tomorrow," Albus replied. "Now, I must go. I have a few things to organise at the Ministry before the Feast tonight. Thank you, Remus."

"It was no trouble, Albus," Remus said with a confused look on his face. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow." Albus nodded before standing and Disapparating away. Remus looked at the glass of water in his hand and sighed before downing it in one gulp.

* * *

Luna was busy packing the remainder of her things into the special trunk that her father had given her as a present just a day earlier. It was the same trunk that her mother had taken to Hogwarts during her final year at Hogwarts. That was good enough for Luna to treat the trunk like it was special, but it was also special in that it had an extension charm within it, so she could easily fit everything inside. It was smaller than most trunks, yet could hold more. It also appeared to have a charm designed to lighten it, as Luna had no trouble lifting or moving it. She wondered whether her mother had done all of that herself. She decided that she probably did, as her mother had always had a special affinity with Charms.

Luna had packed most of her things the night before, but she still had a few last minute items to pack. Luckily, she had gotten herself up at four-thirty to do so, otherwise it would have taken too long. Her father was still asleep so she was trying to be very quiet, though it was quite hard because Luna was so very excited. She had never felt this excited before. There was just something about Hogwarts that made her feel complete.

It was around five-thirty when Luna packed the last item into the trunk. She then sighed and sat down on her bed. Her father was still not up, so she was about to go downstairs and make breakfast for herself. But before she could, her hand drifted to the Butterbeer-Cork Necklace around her neck. The last thing her mother had ever given her. And Luna began to cry.

Luna sat on her bed for five minutes with her head in her hands and cried until her father, having heard her, came into the room.

"Angel, what's wrong?" her father asked quietly as he sat on the bed and she threw her arms around his neck, crying into his purple and pink pyjamas.

There was not a word said between the two of them for a few minutes when Luna stopped crying but held onto her father still.

"Luna?" Her father asked. Luna sighed.

"I … I just wish Mummy was here for today. She … I miss her so much," Luna said, letting one last tear fall down her tear stained face. Her father cradled her head close to him.

"Oh, Luna," He said soothingly. "Your mother will be there today. She's never really left you, you know? She's always around. She's watching over you."

"I-I know," Luna said with a sniff. "But it's not … it isn't …"

"The same?" her father asked and she nodded. "I know. But she wouldn't want you to be crying on a day like today." Luna looked up into her father's face. "Today's a happy day! You get to finally go to Hogwarts! I think that's a happy occasion, don't you?" Luna smiled and let out a small giggle.

"Yeah," she said quietly as she let go of her father. "I think I'll be fine now."

"Well that's good to know," her father said, standing up and taking her hand. "Come on now. I'm going to make you some really nice pancakes and then we'll head over to the Burrow. It should be interesting. Apparently we're taking cars to King's Cross. I've never been in a car before."

"Neither have I, Daddy," Luna said with a smile. "Harry has, though, and he said that they're safe."

"That makes me feel better," he said as he began to make the pancakes. Luna enjoyed her breakfast thoroughly and soon found herself on her way over to the Burrow with her father carrying the luggage. He had wanted to Apparate over, but Luna insisted that they walk. Sometimes her father could be downright silly.

When they arrived at the Burrow, they found something of a madhouse. It was nearing the time to leave, they had to leave before seven, but it seemed like last minute things were still being done. At this point it was about twenty-five to seven. Mr Weasley came bounding towards them.

"Morning Xeno. Luna," he said quickly. "You two are in the car over there," he pointed to a black car with a man in a Muggle suit standing beside it, "with Harry and Sirius. We're going in our own car."

"Thank you, Arthur," Luna's father said with a smile. He then led Luna over to the black car. Just before they reached it, Luna heard Harry's voice.

"Luna!" he shouted and Luna had to turn around. "You're here. Good. We're sharing a car."

"I know," Luna replied. "Hello, Sirius," she said to the man walking a few feet behind Harry and dragging a large trunk behind him. He seemed to be glaring at Luna's trunk as though it was a demon.

"Hello Luna," he said, his demeanour quickly changing to something much more cheerful. "How are you, Xeno? It's been too long."

"It has, and I've been fantastic," Luna's father said, extending a hand which Sirius took, while the man in the suit took the trunk. "It must be a relief to be out of St. Mungo's." Sirius let out a barking laugh.

"You don't know the half of it," Sirius said loudly as he stepped out of the way of Ronald rushing his owl Harry had bought him into their car. "I'm just glad I can see Harry off to be honest."

As the man in the suit took Luna's bag, she took Harry aside quickly.

"It looks like we'll get there before the Weasleys'," Luna said and Harry nodded with a smile. "So we'll get on the train and go as far back as possible. We will either find Colin or we can get a compartment and wait for him."

"Sounds good," Harry said. "That way we can talk to him for a little while before Ron finds us. I have a feeling that Ron won't take to Colin very well." Luna nodded, having had the very same thoughts herself.

"Arthur!" Sirius said loudly. "We'll head off."

"Alright," Mr Weasley replied. "We won't be too far behind … hopefully."

"Come on you two," Sirius said, putting an arm around Harry's shoulder. Luna smiled at the happy look on Harry's face. "We get the back seat!"

They did indeed get the back seat while Luna's father sat in the front next to the driver. Luna sat on the left side while Harry sat in the middle and Sirius on the right. She was slightly nervous about her first time being in a car. Harry seemed to notice this and gave her hand a squeeze. Luna looked at him and gave a thankful smile.

As the car started, Luna began to feel a lot better about the experience and calmed down. Two hours into the trip she began to feel tired, having woken early. Before she knew it she fell asleep. The next thing she remembered was being woken gently by Harry on whom she seemed to have fallen asleep.

"Come on, Luna," Harry said quietly. "We're at King's Cross now. We've gotta get to the train." Luna's eyes flew open as she began to feel anxiety about going to Hogwarts set in. She looked at Harry whose face was tinged with red. She looked around and saw Sirius smirking.

"Oh … Of course," Luna said in a timid tone that surprised even her.

"Don't worry Luna," Harry said as Luna stepped out of the car. "It'll all be fine." For some strange reason those few words made Luna feel much better.

Within minutes they arrived at the barrier between Platforms Nine and Ten. As they did, Luna looked to her father and was about to speak but he cut her off by taking her hand.

"Just come with me, Luna," her father said softly. "You just have to walk through the barrier. I'll go with you."

"Alright Daddy," Luna said anxiously as her father gave her hand a squeeze. Both of them walked straight to the barrier and passed through. Luna heard the sounds around her change dramatically and she looked up to see the scarlet train right in front of her. Without really knowing it, she let out a sigh.

"Quite a sight isn't it?" Luna heard her father say over the noises around them. She didn't answer and just nodded her head. She was beginning to feel very nervous about what was going to happen next. She knew that she would have to get on the train and leave her father behind. She knew that she wouldn't see him again until Christmas.

"Ready, Luna?" Harry suddenly asked as she was watching the train. She looked to him and smiled.

"As I'll ever be," she said, turning back to her father as Harry turned to Sirius. "I'll miss you, Daddy." She said as her eyes started to tear up. She could see the same thing happening in her father's eyes.

"I'll miss you too sweetheart," he replied, scooping her up into a hug. As he did so, Luna let the tears flow. "Don't cry," her father said softly wiping the tears away from her face. "It's only a few months and we'll see each other again. And I'll make sure that you get every issue of _The Quibbler_ delivered to you. I'll write as often as I can." Luna sniffed.

"Alright, Daddy," she said with a weak smile. "I'd better go. I would like to get a compartment at the very back of the train."

"Ah yes," her father said jovially. "Always lucky to do so." Luna looked into her father's eyes for a moment before kissing him goodbye and giving him one last hug.

"Bye, Daddy. I love you," she said finally.

"I love you too Luna," her father said. Luna turned to Harry, who was standing with Sirius, having already said their goodbyes it seemed, and simply nodded before picking up her trunk. Harry handed Hedwig over to a man waiting near an entrance to the train before they finally boarded. Luna had left her owl at home as her father was going to send it to Hogwarts the next day.

With about fifteen minutes to spare, Harry and Luna found a compartment at the very back of the train. They had made sure to check the other compartments for a sight of Colin or Hermione, but had seen neither so they had moved on to the last one. They stowed their luggage in the overhead compartment and sat down.

"Do you think Hermione will find us alright?" Harry asked and Luna nearly laughed.

"With everything I know, I think I can safely say that Hermione will find us without any issues whatsoever," she said. Harry smiled sheepishly.

"I guess you're right," he said before poking his head out of the doorway. "You were right. Here she comes." Ten seconds later, Hermione appeared.

"Really?" she said exasperatedly as she stowed away her trunk. "The back of the train? I was looking _everywhere_ for you. Starting from the front!" Luna and Harry both laughed.

"I like the back of the train," Luna informed her. "Daddy's always said it's lucky to sit at the very back." Hermione looked as if she were about to shoot down the theory, but Luna saw Harry try to discreetly shake his head.

"I see," Hermione finally said, taking a seat opposite Luna and Harry.

"Also, we said we would meet Colin here," Harry said.

"Colin? The boy from Flourish and Blott's?" Hermione asked. "I didn't know you said we'd do that."

"Really?" Luna asked with her brow furrowed. "I'm sure I did." This led to a two minute conversation about whether Luna had, in fact, told Hermione. It was broken by someone at the door.

"Uh … Hi," Colin said nervously. Luna turned and gave him a bright smile.

"Come in," she said happily.

* * *

Harry stood and helped Colin stow away his trunk, which was surprisingly heavy for a First Year, Harry thought. It was a very good thing that Sirius had cast a charm on his to make it light once they got to the station. Apparently it had only occurred to him when he realised that Luna's had the same charm.

"Thanks," Colin said happily before taking a seat next to Hermione.

"No problem," Harry said. There was a slight silence before Luna spoke up.

"Have you read much about Hogwarts?" she asked airily and Colin's face brightened.

"I hadn't read much before I met you in Diagon Alley but after that I bought a book, _Hogwarts: A History_ , and I read it all the way through." This caught Hermione's attention in an almost comical way. "I didn't realise how big of a deal Hogwarts was before then. It's really amazing. I just hope I don't get lost. It's rather big isn't it? Do we get a map?" The way in which Colin spoke reminded Harry a lot of Hermione on the day he had first met her a year ago.

"It is big," Hermione replied. "And you don't get a map, though I have to admit that it would be helpful. For the first week it will be difficult trying to get around, but the paintings and ghosts will help you if you ask them."

"Really?" Colin asked. "I didn't know that they would help. I was actually dreading seeing a ghost. Isn't it strange?"

"I suppose it is," Hermione said. "But they're mostly nice. As long as you steer clear of the Bloody Baron you will be fine."

"I'm sorry," Colin said. "I don't even know your name."

"Hermione Granger," Hermione said with a smile.

"Colin Creevey," Colin replied. "Are your parents magical?"

"Not in the slightest," Hermione laughed. Just after she spoke, a loud horn sounded, signifying that the train would start to move within seconds. All four occupants of the compartment looked out the window to try and see their loved ones once more before they left. Harry saw Sirius waving to him, as he knew they would try to get the back compartment. Next to him stood Mr Lovegood, Mrs Granger and Mr Granger. He also saw Mr and Mrs Weasley as well.

Colin had apparently seen his parents, as he was waving wildly. Soon, the train was off and the compartment fell silent except for the sound of the train itself.

"You're a Muggle-born as well?" Colin asked, looking to Hermione. "And you do alright?" Harry couldn't help it and let out a laugh.

"Alright?" he asked, laughing again. "Bloody hell. She's the best in our year!"

"Are you really?" Colin asked a now blushing Hermione.

"Well, I don't really know about that," she said modestly. "But I do well. Everyone really is on equal footing when they get to Hogwarts for the most part."

"Unless it's Potions or Flying," Harry pointed out and Colin looked at him.

"I think I can understand Flying, but why Potions?" he asked. Harry would have laughed had he not known that Colin really didn't know.

"Professor Snape," Harry said. While he knew that the man could be trusted, and that he was a good thing, he knew that Snape still hated him because of both his father and his mother. That wouldn't change. "He really doesn't like anyone who isn't in Slytherin. Particularly Gryffindors."

"You two have already been to Hogwarts?" Colin asked and Harry and Hermione both nodded. "What House are you in?"

"We're both Gryffindors," Hermione said proudly.

"I hope I go there," Colin said. "But I'll probably be a Hufflepuff. Mum thinks that."

"Hufflepuff isn't bad," Harry said. "So long as you don't go to Slytherin, we'll be fine. Well, I suppose I'll still be fine even if you do end up in Slytherin."

"Well I still hope I'm in Gryffindor," Colin said before eyeing Harry curiously. "I didn't catch your name."

"That's because I haven't told you yet," Harry reached out a hand. "Harry Potter." Those two words made Colin seem like he had too much sugar.

"Are you? For real?" He asked, shaking Harry's hand quickly. "I've read heaps about you. I knew you were around my age. I didn't think I'd ever talk to you though."

"Harry doesn't like his fame, Colin," Luna interjected. Colin looked to Harry questioningly.

"You don't?" he asked and Harry shook his head.

"I'm famous for something I don't remember and my parents died to protect me," Harry said simply. "I don't deserve or want the fame."

"I'm sorry, Harry. I just –" Colin said but stopped when Harry waved a hand dismissively.

"Don't worry about it," Harry said with a smirk. "I seem to remember a certain First Year girl last year who thought the same thing as you." Hermione blushed. "And now she's one of my best friends. If I can forgive Hermione, I can certainly forgive you."

"Thank you," Colin said with a sigh. He was about to say something else but the compartment door slid open.

"There you are!" Ron said. "At the bloody end of the train. We thought we'd never find you!" Harry saw Ginny behind her brother. Ron walked in and put away his trunk while Harry helped Ginny with hers. Ron sat next to Harry while Ginny sat nervously next to Colin. "Who's this?"

"I'm Colin Creevey," Colin replied amicably, reaching out a hand to the redhead who didn't take it. "Alright." Colin said as he withdrew his hand, crestfallen. Ginny glared at Ron.

"I'm Ginny Weasley and that prat is my older brother Ron," she told Colin. "One of six older brothers actually. Not all of them are prats. Just the ones on this train."

"Harry," Ron said loudly. "Can I speak with you outside?" Harry didn't have a good feeling about this but nodded and slid the door open to let him and Ron out. Colin looked slightly worried as Harry shut the door.

"Yes?" Harry asked.

"What is that Colin guy doing there?" Ron asked.

"Luna met him in Diagon Alley and invited him to sit with us," Harry said. Ron frowned.

"You know he's only here because of you, right Harry?" Ron said matter-of-factly and Harry shook his head sadly.

"No he isn't Ron, he –" Harry said but was cut off.

"Yes he is, Harry," Ron insisted. "You might not be able to see it, but I can. He only wants to be friends with the Boy Who Lived. They all do."

"Ron, he's fine. I talked to him and –" But Ron cut him off again.

"Believe me, Harry," Ron said. "I know what I'm talking about." Just then, Harry had a thought.

"Who am I, Ron?" Harry asked suddenly.

"What do you mean?" Ron asked, confused.

"Who am I to you?" Harry asked. Ron didn't even miss a beat.

"Harry Potter. The Boy Who Lived. The guy who saved us," he said quickly. Harry felt like something inside him broke.

"Alright then," Harry said coolly. "Let's do a little test, shall we?" Harry opened the door to the compartment and pulled Ron inside. "Hermione?"

"Yes, Harry?" Hermione replied.

"Who am I to you?" Harry asked.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Tell me who I am to you," Harry said firmly and Hermione nodded.

"You're Harry, my first and best friend," Hermione replied. "And you also need to focus more on school work." Harry chuckled, though his face fell back to how it was before as he looked to Luna.

"Who am I to you, Luna?" Harry asked her. He thought he saw her lips twitch upwards slightly.

"Harry Potter. A great friend," Luna replied. "No more. No less."

"Thank you, Luna," Harry said as he turned to Ginny who was watching on with a confused look. "Same question Ginny."

"Well … I would have said The Boy Who Lived before, but I see now that that just isn't true. So I will just say, Harry Potter, my brother's friend," Ginny replied. The last words stung Harry a little but he nodded, turning to Colin.

"Colin?" Harry asked. Colin looked surprised to be included.

"Well I don't really know you, but I know you don't like your fame. I actually hope you'll be my friend," Colin said shyly. Harry smiled at him.

"We're friends, Colin," Harry said happily, causing Colin to smile broadly. Harry turned back to Ron who seemed to be realising his mistake. "You see something there, Ron?" Harry asked and Ron's face turned red.

"I'm sorry, Harry," was all Ron said.

"You know I don't like it, Ron," Harry said seriously. "A year you've been my friend. By now I would have thought you would have had an answer like 'Harry Potter, my best friend' not 'The Boy Who Lived'."

"Wait, you said what?" Hermione asked, standing from her seat. "Are you really that dense?" she asked loudly.

"I …" Ron trailed off.

"No, I already knew you were that dense," Hermione said angrily. "But I did think you had more respect for Harry then that! It's one thing to not respect me or my family, but a whole other thing to say that. I'm surprised Harry hasn't kicked you out yet."

"I … Well I'll just go then," Ron said, taking down his trunk.

"That might be best," Ginny said. Ron looked at Ginny for a moment before turning and leaving.

"I can't believe the nerve of him!" Hermione huffed as she sat down angrily.

"I'm sure he will come to his senses," Luna said evenly. "Despite everything I do think that he values your friendship, Harry."

"I hope so," Harry said.

"I knew there was something fishy about how much he talked about you," Ginny said.

"Thank you all, by the way," Harry said with a weak smile. "I was glad to hear those answers."

"Did you really mean that?" Colin asked. "About being my friend?"

"Absolutely!" Harry exclaimed. "I'm sure the rest of us here feel the same way, don't we?" There were agreements from Luna, Hermione and Ginny and Colin grinned broadly.

"Thanks," he said. "I was really worried about all this. I was worried that I wouldn't make a friend and have to hang out with Dennis all the time. Don't get me wrong, I love him, but I think that would be a bit sad." Harry and Luna shared a look before continuing the conversation.

The rest of the train ride went by fairly quickly considering the length. Harry introduced Colin to various magical games that Sirius had sent with him as they chatted about the coming year. Harry also showed Colin the various different sweets as well. Colin really liked the Chocolate Frogs and ended up with seven different cards, including Dumbledore and Merlin. Harry wondered vaguely if there were more of the better-known cards in the Hogwarts Express Chocolate Frogs so that First Years learn something more before getting to the school.

During a period where there was not much going on, Harry was reading a book as Luna fell asleep on his shoulder again. And, as he had in the car, he felt strangely at peace and just let her be.

Luna slept until the Harry woke her up so that she could get changed into her robes. The train slowed and Colin, Ginny and Luna all began to look extremely nervous.

"Just go with Hagrid," Harry said. "He'll take good care of you, I promise."

"It's really quite beautiful what happens," Hermione said with a sparkle in her eye. "Harry and I will be going a different way to the castle. Just enjoy it."

"You'll all be fine," Harry said which visibly calmed all three. They all soon exited the train and heard Hagrid calling the first years. "We'll see you at the Feast."

* * *

 _ **May 1st/2nd, 1998**_

 _Colin was seated in a chair in the safehouse in France. His family had been moved there by the Order of the Phoenix at the insistence of Ginny Weasley, and Colin was quite happy with the situation, especially given what had been happening to Muggle-borns in Britain. But he was also rather annoyed that he had to hide. He would rather be helping to end the Death Eaters for good._

 _He had been in hiding for months with his parents and Dennis. The Order of the Phoenix apparently had connections to the Delacour family in France through Bill Weasley so they were able to provide a house for the Creevey family. It was a nice house and they were certainly free to do what they like in the nearby town, but it was still hiding at the end of the day._

 _Colin had been out of contact from the British Wizarding world with the exception of the occasional letter from Ginny. The letters had increased after Easter because she had apparently not gone back to Hogwarts and it made it easier to contact him. She sent a new Galleon in the last one that could be used to send small messages like they used to in the DA. So far he had heard nothing from it, but he constantly kept it on him._

 _As he sat at the table with the rest of his family, he felt something strange in his pocket. He reached in and picked up the Galleon and read the note. It said that they were getting ready to fight. Colin grasped the Galleon and raced upstairs much to the shock of his family. He grabbed the pen that had been given to him by Kingsley Shacklebolt and raced back downstairs._

" _I'm sorry, but I have to go back," Colin told his family as their eyes filled with shock. Dennis stood up._

" _No! Stay here! It's safe here," he said loudly._

" _No!" Colin roared angrily in a voice he had never used before. "Other than you three, that is my life. Hogwarts is my life. The DA is my life. The magical world is my life. I'm going." He didn't see it, but Dennis reached out to take away the pen. "Sanctuary," Colin said and the Portkey took effect._

 _Colin realised all too late that Dennis had grabbed on as they landed in the Hog's Head in Hogsmeade. Shacklebolt had set the Portkey to there because Aberforth was trustworthy. Dumbledore's brother seemed not to bat an eyelid at the two boys landing in his pub._

" _I imagine you two're here to fight?" Aberforth asked in a monotone. Colin nodded his head._

" _Yes, I am, but Dennis isn't," Colin said. "He shouldn't even be here. Can you get him somewhere safe?" Aberforth nodded and took the pen from Colin's hand and made it into a Portkey which took Dennis away. "How do I get to Hogwarts?"_

 _Colin caught up with a few Dumbledore's Army members who were preparing to fight before McGonagall showed up and told them all that only people of age could fight. Colin was only a month and a half away and thought that he should be allowed to so he brought it up with McGonagall._

" _Absolutely not, Creevey, go! And you Peakes!" McGonagall shouted. Colin didn't let that get him down. For appearances sakes, Colin stayed behind but waited until McGonagall left and snuck out into the halls of Hogwarts and into the battle._

 _As he moved through the halls, Colin saw people everywhere locked in battle. As he ran, he saw a green bolt streak past his face, nearly hitting him. Colin recognised what it was and turned to his attacker, his wand drawn._

"Stupefy _!" Colin yelled. The red bolt of magic hit the Death Eater in the chest and they crumpled. Colin quickly scanned the area and saw no one else. Colin tied the Death Eater up and ran off. His heart racing, he was mentally preparing himself to fight some more._

" _NO!" Colin heard a woman scream and Colin ran towards the sound, hoping he could do some good. As he ran, Colin saw a Death Eater he recognised as Bellatrix Lestrange hit a woman, who Colin assumed was the source of the sound, with a Killing Curse. The woman silently fell to the ground and Bellatrix threw back her head and cackled. With a quick scan Colin saw the body of Professor Lupin nearby._

" _Teach you to marry a werewolf and bear his disgusting, half-breed spawn, dear niece!" the insane woman cackled. Colin sent a stunner at her which surprised Bellatrix slightly._

" _Ooh, you look like you need to be taught some manners," Bellatrix sneered as she deftly blocked every spell sent by Colin at her. "And you don't look familiar either. Muggle-born scum are we?"_

"You call _me_ _scum?" Colin asked angrily. "You're a murderer and a Death Eater! You just killed someone and laughed."_

" _You're right, boy, I did," Bellatrix replied with a laugh, spitting at the body of the woman on the ground. "Serves her right. But I'll take just as much pleasure in killing you, mudblood._ AVADA KEDAVRA _!" Colin had enough in him to jump out of the path of the curse and flee. It was a fight he simply couldn't win so he decided to retreat. He saw a number of Killing Curses hit the ground around him as he ran, but he was lucky to not be hit. Bellatrix's cackles rang in the hallways._

 _He turned a corner and saw something that made his heart sink. There was a girl, probably second or third year, who was cowering away from a Death Eater who had his wand pointed at her. Colin ran forward and saw the man say the words rather than heard them._

 _Colin watched the green curse leave the man's wand and, without thinking he threw himself in front of the girl. The curse hit Colin and he knew no more._


	9. The Sorting

**_D_** ** _isclaimer:_** _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

—CHAPTER EIGHT—

 _The Sorting_

 _ **May 2nd, 1998**_

 _Claire Rutherford had begun her Hogwarts life by being sorted into Ravenclaw in 1995. After that she soon found that she was living through another war started by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Luckily for Claire, she was half-blood with her mother being pure-blood and her father being a Muggle-born so she knew that she was relatively safe. That being said, she knew that her father had been on the run since the beginning of 1998. Her mother could only do so much for him as a pure-blood, especially as she did not support You-Know-Who but also could not come out against him without putting her family in danger._

 _Her family was not part of the Death Eaters. In fact, the pure-blood families that her mother was descended from were both small, and she was the only living member of both sides of the family. Her mother's maiden name was Carlyle though Claire's Grandmother had been a Goyle. The Goyles had always been supporters of people like He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, but the Carlyle family had remained neutral for a long time._

 _This was why, even if she had been allowed to, Claire would not have fought in the Battle of Hogwarts. While she certainly did support the sentiments that Dumbledore had represented whilst he was alive, she, and her family, did not want to anger He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named or his followers into attacking them._

 _So when Professor McGonagall told all of the under seventeen year old students to get out of the castle, Claire readily agreed. There was only one flaw in her plan. While she was rushing to get out, something happened, she never knew what it was, that knocked her out and she found herself unconscious on the stone floor of Hogwarts. Luckily for her, she didn't get trampled to death._

 _When she came to, she could see spells flying around as she quickly scrambled to her feet, her heart pounding in her chest. She wondered how she was alive if the castle was under attack, but attributed it to the fact that it probably looked to those around her that she was dead._

 _Claire reached into a pocket of her robes, trying to find her wand. She looked for thirty seconds before she realised that she had left it back in her dormitory. Her heart sank. She looked quickly around her and, without thinking, ran towards the place with the least spells._

 _It seemed as though she had run down ten corridors before she realised that she was right back in the thick of it. Before she could slow herself down, she ran into the back of someone and fell backwards, landing on the ground, propped up against a wall._

 _The man that she had run into slowly turned, with a wide grin on his face, showing his yellowish teeth. Claire, whose brain seemed to have stopped functioning, simply started to shake and felt a tear run down her face as she realised that the man was a Death Eater. The man raised his wand and pointed it at her._

"AVADA KEDAVRA _!" he shouted and Claire braced herself but the impact never came as she saw a figure fall down in front of her and a wand clatter to the ground, rolling to her legs. She swiftly picked it up and pointed it at the Death Eater._

"Expelliarmus _!" she shouted, using the only spell that came to her. It was not as effective as it would have been had she used her own wand, but it worked as the wand flew from the man's hand towards her, allowing her to catch it, scramble to her feet and flee, never even seeing the face of the person who had saved her life._

 _Claire rounded the first corner and came face-to-face with a witch she had seen too many times before on "Wanted" posters. Bellatrix Lestrange. The woman cackled as she fingered her wand. Claire froze to the spot, her brain ceasing to function again._

" _Well, well," Bellatrix laughed, putting her wand to Claire's temple. "Look what I found. A scared little student. Did you really think you could protect anyone, dearie?" Bellatrix asked, her face close to Claire's. When Claire finally got her wits about her and she tried to run, she found that she couldn't and began to panic. Apparently Bellatrix had seen this in her eyes because she let out a loud cackle._

" _Oh well," Bellatrix sighed dramatically, tossing her dirty hair behind her. "One less so-called protector._ AVADA KEDAVRA _!"_

* * *

Harry stared for a moment at the horseless carriage that was due to take him and Hermione towards the castle. He apparently had stopped walking as Hermione grabbed his arm.

"Come on Harry," she said excitedly. "Ooh! There's one free." She led him to one of the carriages that was, indeed, free. They both got inside and sat down. A moment later, they saw Neville Longbottom approaching.

"Hey," he said shyly, looking up at the two. "Mind if I share with you guys?"

"That's fine, Neville," Harry said with a smile, reaching his hand down and helping Neville up into the carriage. Harry noted that there was still room for three. "How was the train ride?"

"It was alright," Neville replied. "Slept for a lot of it. Why didn't Ron sit with you guys?"

"Ron was insensitive," Hermione replied quickly. "We didn't want him there."

"Oh," Neville said. "That explains why he seemed a bit off the whole trip." Before Harry or Hermione could reply, a taller boy came to their carriage.

"You mind if I sit with you?" he asked with a broad, toothy smile.

"Of course not," Harry replied and the older boy stepped into the carriage.

"I was the last of my friends to reach the carriage and there was no more room," he said. "Thanks a lot. I'm Cedric Diggory." Harry was happy that Cedric was mostly talking to Neville then, as his eyes widened in realisation. He quickly pushed that aside as the three introduced themselves to Cedric. It wasn't long before another approached their carriage.

"I don't mean to intrude, but may I sit here?" a rather attractive Chinese girl asked.

"Of course," Hermione replied with a smile.

"I'm Cho Chang, by the way," the Chinese girl said as she sat. After a few introductions, one last person turned up. This time it was a boy who seemed to be headed for Third Year. His robes had the Slytherin symbol. His hair was long and dark brown and he had a round-ish face.

"Um …" He said as he looked into the carriage. He looked to Harry. "Uh … Don't worry."

"It's okay," Harry said quickly, causing the boy to stop leaving. "Come on. It's not a big deal."

"But … I," he said before looking around and sighing. "Fine."

"Excellent," Harry said. "What's your name?"

"Ethan. Ethan Revala," the boy replied quietly. "You know I'm in Slytherin right?" he asked and Harry raised his eyebrows.

"Yeah. So?" Harry asked. Hermione and Neville looked at him strangely. "What? Not all Slytherins are like D- Malfoy and Snape," Harry said, looking back to Ethan who had a calculating look on his face.

"I must say, Potter, you are rather open-minded," Ethan said. "I was led to believe that you weren't like that at all."

"Do you hate Harry?" Neville suddenly asked, earning him a glare from Ethan. Cedric and Cho seemed to be watching the conversation unfold with some interest.

"How could I?" Ethan asked. "Or more to the point, why should I? My parents weren't Death Eaters, so I have no problem with him ridding the world of the Dark Lord. I don't agree nor do I disagree about the Muggle and Muggle-born debate. I've never met Potter before, nor talked to him so I've had nothing to base any theoretical thoughts about him on. Everything I know about him has been through the Slytherin Common Room, so I know to take it all with a grain of salt. So, to answer your question, no I don't hate Potter, but I could."

There was a silence in the carriage before it began to move.

"Okay then," Cedric said loudly. "Lockhart for Defence this year. I was expecting a woman when I saw the list … or a flamboyant man." Cho laughed while Harry and Ethan snorted. Neville looked slightly confused and Hermione had her nose scrunched up.

"Lockhart _is_ flamboyant," Harry said with a laugh.

"He's also a fraud," Ethan said as he reached into a small bag he had with him.

"That's not true," Hermione said defensively.

"Really, Granger?" Ethan asked with a smirk. "Check the date on page three hundred and twenty-seven of _Wanderings With Werewolves_ and then look at page 57 of _Holidays With Hags_. And that's just the first instance."

"I noticed that too," Cho said. "I just thought it was an error."

"An error, Chang?" Ethan replied incredulously. "With magic? No way. Besides, there are heaps of those so-called 'errors' throughout his books. I guarantee you, the man is a fraud."

"Surely Dumbledore would have seen this," Neville said. "Why would he still hire him?" Ethan and Cedric both shrugged their shoulders.

"Maybe Lockhart blackmailed him or something?" Cedric offered and Ethan scoffed.

"Blackmail Dumbledore?" he asked with another scoff. "If he tried that, people would want him sent through the Veil. No, I think he may have been the only applicant."

"Why would no one else apply?" Hermione asked.

"They say the subject is cursed," Cho answered. "There hasn't been a Defence Against The Dark Arts Professor in a long time that has lasted longer than a year."

"And now everyone's scared," Cedric continued. "Who wouldn't be, after Quirrell? Could the curse be getting more aggressive as time goes on?" Harry had no idea what was being talked about, nor did Neville by the look of him, but Cedric, Ethan, Cho and Hermione all had thoughtful looks on their faces.

"I'm not really sure," Ethan said. "I guess it would depend on who cast it and how powerful they were when they cast it."

"And for a curse that lasted so long, they would have to have been pretty powerful," Cho said.

"And curses like that break after death," Hermione murmured. "So they have to be alive."

"But none of this really matters," Ethan said quickly. "All that matters is that we get a terrible teacher again. Quirrell was terrible. Tunde wasn't bad, though, I have to admit." He said as Cedric and Cho nodded.

"But if he is a fraud, and I'm still not convinced that he is," Hermione said quickly, "what does that mean for us?"

"Boredom," Ethan said simply. "And probably a lot of quizzes on himself. Oh wait, I already said boredom."

"I have to agree," Cedric said. "While, like Ethan said, Tunde wasn't bad, the others before him were pretty terrible. I can only hope that Dumbledore gives up on Lockhart once he truly realises what a fraud that the man is."

"So, what?" Neville asked in a shy voice. "We don't get a real education?"

"No," Ethan replied. "And a lot of the subjects aren't quite as bad as having a fraud for a teacher, but they're close. Take History of Magic, for example. It's taught by the ghost of the man who taught it for decades. And, from what I understand, he wasn't all that interesting when he was alive. How many of you just fall asleep in his class?" Harry, Neville, Cedric and Cho put their hands up along with Ethan who looked in surprise at Hermione. "Damn, Granger. I heard you were a teacher's pet, but this is a bit much. Why would you listen to him when you could learn _more_ from the textbooks?"

"He's a teacher," Hermione protested.

"So's Snape." That comment award Ethan a strange look from everyone present. He just simply shrugged his shoulders. "He doesn't _teach_ Potions, he puts writing on a chalkboard and tells you to go. He talks about how Potions is a science and even an art form, but he doesn't give people the ways to make it so. And I know for a fact that he isn't exactly fair to your Houses, particularly Gryffindor, and I don't agree with that. I would rather win the House Cup legitimately than win by Snape awarding extra points to Slytherin and taking points from every other house. I mean, last year, McGonagall took one hundred and fifty points from you three," he motioned to Harry, Hermione and Neville, "and you're from her own House. She isn't biased. Of course, you then received points at the end of last year, which I believe you did earn to an extent."

"How?" Harry asked. "No one knows what really happened down there."

"You really think Weasley could keep his overly large trap shut?" Ethan laughed. "I overheard him telling some Seventh Year boy. He was gloating really. Where is he by the way?"

"He's not our friend," Hermione said coldly and Ethan actually smiled.

"Well good for you," He said. "The other Weasleys I can respect. I mean Dragons and a Curse-Breaker? Not much better than that. Percy might as well be a Slytherin and Fred and George are actually funny." Harry felt his jaw drop.

"I thought Slytherin hated the Weasleys," Neville said sceptically.

"Not really," Ethan replied with a shrug. "Ron is the type of person who we don't get along with in terms of general personality clashes. Put simply, he is pure Gryffindor. Everyone in this carriage exhibits traits of other houses, myself included. That's why I can get along with you. Pure Gryffindors are not people that I like. To be fair, I don't really like pure Slytherins, either. But back to the original question, there _are_ people within Slytherin, like Malfoy, who hate the Weasleys in general, but most of us don't.

"You lot aren't all bad," Ethan said, as the carriage came to a stop. "But don't think this makes us friends."

"Of course not," Cedric said, rolling his eyes.

"Right," Ethan said, eyeing Cedric. "I'm leaving."

"Thanks for letting me share a carriage," Cho said before leaving.

"I have to go," Cedric said with a smile. "Don't be strangers."

Very soon, Harry, Hermione and Neville were walking up to the castle entrance together. Harry realised, as soon as he saw the majestic castle, that he really did belong at Hogwarts. They were all quickly ushered into the Great Hall and sat down at their respective House Tables. As this happened, the murmuring started, with a lot of female attention directed at one Gilderoy Lockhart. And, boy, was he enjoying it.

* * *

Hagrid led the group of First Years down to the boats and Colin finally got his first glimpse of Hogwarts. He actually gasped at the sheer beauty in front of him. He had seen some of the castles scattered around Britain, but he had never seen one quite like Hogwarts.

As Colin had entered one of the boats with Luna and Ginny, he thought about how happy he was to have been accepted into a group of friends so easily. It had crossed his mind more than once that they might not actually like him and that it was going to be a huge practical joke that ended with him humiliated, but he stopped thinking along those lines in the hope that he was absolutely wrong.

The big thing for Colin was the fact that he was friends with the one person he was hoping to be. He had only chosen Harry Potter to focus on because he actually knew his name and that they were both around the same age, not because he was famous. With all of his concerns, Colin felt like it was wise to have a backup plan. In the end he needn't have had one, as he ended up with both.

Another boy entered the boat when Colin, Luna and Ginny sat down. He had dark brown hair and looked more than a little frightened. Colin turned to him and extended his hand.

"Hi!" he said excitedly. "I'm Colin Creevey." The boy eyed him slightly before shaking his hand.

"Garion. Garion Revala," he said quickly before looking out at the water.

"Don't be too worried about the water," Colin told Garion. "I go fishing with my Dad occasionally and the boat's never tipped. I imagine that it would be safer with magic." Garion raised his eyebrows slightly but nodded, without saying anything. If Colin hadn't have known that the boy was obviously worried, he would have thought it rude. As it was, Colin just smiled and leaned towards Luna and Ginny who were in the front of the boat.

"Hey, when does this thing start?" Colin asked just before the boats lurched forwards, setting them in motion. "Alright then."

The boats moved across the lake and Colin couldn't seem to tear his eyes away from the castle. That was until Hagrid told them to duck their heads and Colin didn't hear him. Luckily for Colin, Garion had noticed this and pushed Colin's head down enough.

"Thanks," Colin said.

"No problem," replied Garion, looking quite green. The boats docked and Hagrid got out, with the first years following suit. Colin got out and stood between Ginny and Luna, excitedly chatting about the castle as they walked along.

"I've heard so many descriptions of the castle before from all of my brothers, and I've even seen pictures in books, but none of them do it justice," Ginny said and Colin nodded fiercely.

"It really is wonderful," he said. "I can't wait to have a look around inside."

"The First Years, Professor McGonagall," Hagrid said gruffly, talking to a stern looking witch in a large, green witch's hat. Colin recognised both her and her name as the woman who had told him that he was a wizard and smiled at her, though her face didn't change.

"Thank you, Hagrid," McGonagall said and the big man nodded and walked through some doors. McGonagall turned to the group and began a speech. "Let me be the first to welcome all of you to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." There was not a word spoken by the students while Professor McGonagall spoke. Some were silent out of respect, some out of awe and some even out of fear. Colin was one of those in awe of what he was witnessing.

"Now, tonight, before the start of school year feast begins you have to be sorted into houses. These houses are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. While you are here at Hogwarts, your House will be like your family. There is also an inter-House competition we run every year at Hogwarts. You will gain points for your achievements and if you break rules you will lose points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points wins the House Cup. When you enter the Great Hall in a moment you will not join your fellow schoolmates, you will walk down the middle and stop at the head of the tables where you will await your sorting. Once the sorting is complete we will then begin the feast. If you would, follow me now and we can begin."

As Colin entered into the Great Hall, he originally looked around at the long tables, seeing heaps of students all looking at the First Years. He saw Harry and Hermione sitting together and waved, but he didn't think they saw him. His eyes were then drawn to the roof of the room, which appeared to look out into the night sky. He had read about it, but seeing it was something else. It was a clear night, and the stars reminded him of camping with his family.

Colin was feeling very excited as he, and the rest of the First Years, stopped right at the very front of the Great Hall. He looked out at the students again and saw Harry and Hermione, smiling and sitting close to the empty seats that would soon be filled by the First Years. This made him happy because he knew that he wanted to be in Gryffindor. He _would_ be in Gryffindor.

Professor McGonagall moved off to a side and picked up a stool and a battered old hat. She moved the stool to the middle of the Great Hall, at the very front of the large table consisting of many teachers. Colin noticed a long silver beard and immediately felt quite excited. He looked back to the hat, just in time to see it open its brim.

 _My great expertise,_  
 _Is required once again,_  
 _As the new First Years,_  
 _Need Sorting to their den._

 _Hogwarts has always,_  
 _Had a place in many a heart._  
 _This great school is a place,_  
 _Where dreams begin to start._

 _See the majesty and glory,_  
 _That is Hogwarts School._  
 _A thousand years it's been here,_  
 _An educational tool._

 _This year is different,_  
 _As was the last._  
 _Knowledge is known,_  
 _Different to the past._

 _You are all together,_  
 _Though some will lead the way._  
 _This is needed, however,_  
 _To go a different way._

 _Alas, think on it no longer!_  
 _For the time is at the fore._  
 _To sort the new students,_  
 _So that they may learn magical lore!_

 _You may be in wise Ravenclaw,_  
 _With knowledge of magical arts._  
 _Like the brilliant Ignatia Wildsmith,_  
 _Aspire to be known for smarts._

 _Hufflepuff is another great House,_  
 _In which loyalty is prided._  
 _Be true and helpful to all,_  
 _As Hengist of Woodcroft provided._

 _In Gryffindor, you belong,_  
 _If you have courage to spare.  
The House of the Headmaster._  
 _Have little fear and beware!_

 _The house of the cunning,_  
 _Dear old Slytherin,_  
 _So misunderstood are they,_  
 _The House that housed Merlin._

 _So step up, dear children!_  
 _Slip me on your head!_  
 _I'll see in your mind,_  
 _And see where you should bed!_

The hall burst into applause, Colin one of the loudest, as the Sorting Hat finished its song. Colin was amazed at the fact that a hat could actually sing. In fact, he was surprised that a hat could do something as amazing as sort a student.

"When I call your name, you will come up, sit on the stool and place the Sorting Hat on your head. You will then be sorted into your houses," Professor McGonagall announced, opening a scroll.

"Benson, Ashley," McGonagall announced and a young, blonde girl sat on the stool, looking terrified. She was there for about half a minute before the mouth of the Sorting Hat opened.

"HUFFLEPUFF!" the Sorting Hat cried, causing Colin to jump. The Sorting Hat was a lot louder than he had expected. Two more names were called and sorted before Professor said the words that Colin had been very excited for.

"Creevey, Colin," McGonagall announced and the Colin almost ran up to the stool and put the Hat on his head roughly.

"Well you are an excitable one," the Sorting Hat said and Colin jumped.

"Wait," Colin said before hearing something.

"No, no," the Sorting Hat said quickly. "I can hear your thoughts. If you need to say something to me, just think it."

 _Alright_ , Colin thought hesitantly. _Does that mean you can see into my brain?_

"Absolutely," the Hat replied. "I can see everything you have ever experienced and what type of person you are. But don't worry. Your secrets are safe with me."

 _Thank you_ , Colin replied. _How do you choose my House?_

"Well that really depends," the Hat said. "Knowing what I do about you, I can see that you would do well in all of the Houses with the exception of Slytherin. I don't think there is enough cunning within you for that House."

 _What do you think I would be suited to, then?_ Colin thought.

"It would be between Hufflepuff and Gryffindor," the Hat said. "Loyalty and bravery often do go hand in hand, though people sometimes can't see the connection. The question is what trait is more prevalent within you? I see that you would like to go into Gryffindor house with your new friends. Well … two of them at least. The problem with this is that this attitude clearly shows loyalty as well. Quite a tough decision."

 _Does my choice mean anything?_ Colin asked quickly.

"It certainly has in the past. People are very complex, you see," the Hat explained. "I was created in order to sort people into four distinct groups with largely different qualities. The problem with this is that people aren't just one quality. So, over the years, there have been people that I have had to place solely because of their preference. So I will ask. Are you sure?"

Colin thought for a second. _Yes_.

"GRYFFINDOR!" the Hat cried and Colin sighed deeply as he removed the Hat and walked to the Gryffindor table where Harry stood up and shook his hand. All around him there were cheers and clapping, though not from what appeared to be the Slytherin table.

"I knew you'd be sorted here," Harry said before Colin sat down directly next to him and waited for the next name to be called.

* * *

Luna smiled as she watched Colin grin and take the Sorting Hat off his head. She was pleased that he was in Gryffindor with, at least, Harry and Hermione. The memories told them that Colin needed friends and it could have been a problem if he had been sorted elsewhere.

This thought made Luna think about her own sorting. She was still very unsure about where exactly she wanted to be sorted. All of her life, Luna had wanted to be in Ravenclaw. Put simply, it was the House that she was most suited for and she had always wanted to go there. But since gaining the memory, she had been feeling a very large pull towards Gryffindor. There wasn't really any way that Luna could explain the sudden pull, all she knew was that it was there and that she _really_ wanted to be in Gryffindor with Harry.

These thoughts ran through Luna's head from the time Colin sat down next to Harry and when McGonagall looked up from her scroll and called, "Lovegood, Luna."

Luna's head flew sharply up as she realised what was happening. She walked forward and put the Hat on her head, knowing that she did not know where she wanted to be placed.

"This is interesting," the Sorting Hat said into Luna's ear. "In Remembrance. Very interesting. I have never had the honour to sort anyone who has used that particular potion before."

 _It was necessary_ , Luna thought.

"Based on that memory, it certainly seems that it was," the Sorting Hat replied. "I must say that I had no idea that things would ever get quite that bad. I did, however, know that Tom Riddle was capable of doing what he did. That is all I can tell you as I am bound by magic to not reveal anything specific that I see to anyone but the student on whose head I sit."

 _So you can't tell me anything else about Tom Riddle?_ Luna asked hopefully.

"Sadly, no. I cannot," the Sorting Hat said. "But for now, I think we should move on to your sorting."

 _Alright_ , Luna replied.

"I can see that you are very conflicted as to what House you would like to be in," the Sorting Hat said. "I can also see that this is directly related to the memory you received."

 _Where do you think I should go?_ Luna asked.

"I, too, am quite conflicted. Putting aside the memory, you are very suited to Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff," the Sorting Hat replied. "But I must take into account everything. From yours and Mr Potter's memories, and the results of receiving them, I could put you in Gryffindor or Slytherin, although I would be more inclined towards Gryffindor out of the two. There is something …"

 _What?_ Luna asked quickly.

"I can see that you are a very unique individual, which is a good thing," the Sorting Hat said reasonably. "Most won't understand these eccentricities of yours and will likely target you as a result. This would be most prevalent in Ravenclaw, as they think of themselves as the most logical. To avoid this you would either need to go to Hufflepuff or go to where your friends are." Luna lifted the brim of the Sorting Hat and looked at Harry who was smiling at her. Colin and Hermione were smiling as well. "I see you have made your decision."

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Luna took the Hat off and walked to the Gryffindor table, oblivious to the clapping and cheers. She was also oblivious to the fact that she had a very large smile on her face as she walked to the side of the table that Hermione was seated on. Luna walked over to her and received a hug.

"Congratulations," Luna heard Harry say. She looked over and looked into his green eyes. She knew, then, that she had been sorted into the right House.

* * *

Ginny was waiting nervously for her name to be called, wringing her hands. She looked over at the Gryffindor table at Harry, Luna, Hermione and Colin who were watching a girl get sorted into Gryffindor. Ginny also looked at Ron, who was watching Harry, and nearly scoffed. Seeing the way that Ron was acting, she realised that she would have been the same way had Luna not talked to her, and that was a sobering thought.

Ginny was having serious doubts about Gryffindor. Ever since Ron acted the way that he did on the train, Ginny had been thinking about what being in Gryffindor would really be like. Ron had shown her a side of Gryffindor that she had not seen before. Her entire family were in Gryffindor, but she wondered whether that was exactly a good thing.

Ron was jealous, it seemed, and was friends with Harry because of the fame. Fred and George were near failures in school-work, but they could be as crafty as Slytherins and smart as Ravenclaws. Percy, everyone knew, could easily have been a Slytherin and, no doubt, had to talk his way out of it. Charlie was doing a job that could endanger his life. Her mother was a little too maternal. Her father was a little too submissive. Bill was really the only person in her family that she couldn't really find negatives to. He was in a relatively safe job and was a wonderful brother. It was all just too much and Ginny was beginning to wonder if she would be better off in a different House.

"Revala, Garion," McGonagall called and Ginny snapped out of it, remembering the boy from the boats. Garion made his way up to the stool, looking a little frightened. As he put the Hat on his head, Ginny noticed his eyes flicker towards the Slytherin table. He sat under the Hat for about a minute and a half before the brim in the old, patched hat opened.

"HUFFLEPUFF!" it shouted and the Hall burst into applause from three of the tables. Ginny looked to the Slytherin table and saw a large number of them glaring at a boy with long, dark brown hair who didn't seem fazed at all. If anything, he had a small smile on his face. Ginny looked back to Garion who walked to the Hufflepuff table with a small, shy smile on his face.

Ginny went back to thinking for a while until it finally came time for her sorting.

"Weasley, Ginevra," McGonagall announced and Ginny took a deep breath before stepping forward, slipping on the Hat and sitting on the stool.

"Interesting," The Hat said in her ears. "A female Weasley. Not many of those in the past."

 _I'm the first in a long time_ , Ginny clarified.

"I don't think I've sorted a Weasley like you in quite some time," the Hat said. "For many years, Weasleys have only wanted to be Gryffindors. Even those who belonged somewhere else." Ginny could tell that he was referencing Percy, but let it go.

 _So where do I belong?_ Ginny asked.

"Ah, but this is tough," the Hat said. "You are, indeed, full of courage. You are also smart and willing to learn. You are loyal as well. And you can be as cunning as anyone. All four traits. The main thing is choosing where you would be best suited. Are you mostly courageous, smart, loyal or cunning? I don't think that Slytherin is a wise choice for you, given the sometimes horrible beliefs among that House about your family. I also don't think Ravenclaw is a choice because you don't pride your knowledge above everything else."

 _So Gryffindor or Hufflepuff?_ Ginny asked.

"Indeed," The Hat replied. "I do have to account for your recent … change of heart regarding Gryffindor, but the decision is still quite difficult."

 _Whatever you think_ , Ginny thought. _I don't want to make this decision_.

"Alright then," the Hat said before falling silent for about ten seconds.

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

The Hat shouted and Ginny let out a sigh of relief as she lifted the Hat off her head. The first thing she noticed was that the applause from Gryffindor was not nearly as loud as it was for anyone else sorted anywhere but Slytherin.

As she walked to the Hufflepuff table, Ginny looked over at the Gryffindor table and saw Harry, Luna, Hermione, Colin, Fred, George and Percy all applauding her with big smiles on their faces. This made Ginny feel a lot better, at least until she looked at Ron who was watching her with a slightly quizzical look on his face. Ginny approached the Hufflepuff table and was greeted by a tall boy who was smiling.

"Hi. I'm Cedric Diggory," he said and Ginny recognised his last name. The Diggorys lived close to them. "Welcome to Hufflepuff." Ginny nodded and smiled as she sat next to a girl with long, blonde hair.

"My name's Ashley Benson," the girl said shyly. "I'm a Muggle-born, so I'm new at all this."

"Ginny Weasley," Ginny replied with a smile. "My whole family's magical, so I can help you through it all."

* * *

 _ **2022**_

 _Harry was awoken by the sound of a siren. The siren came courtesy of a ward that he set up a few years earlier to warn him if the Ministry of Magic ever came under attack. He sat bolt upright and nearly flung himself out of his bed. Ginny, who had been sleeping next to him, did the same._

" _The Ministry?" she asked quickly as they both transfigured their clothes into something more appropriate._

" _Looks like it," Harry said gruffly as he used magic to put his shoes onto his feet. "I have to go. I'm sure it's Voldemort."_

" _Be careful," Ginny said worriedly before Harry gave her a kiss on the cheek._

" _Just look after Lily, okay?" Harry said and Ginny nodded. "I'm off." And with that, Harry Apparated straight to the Ministry. This was not normally something that anyone was able to do, but he could because of his position as Head of the Auror Department._

 _When he got there he found three Aurors locked in battle with Voldemort while many others were already on the ground, staring up at the ceiling. Almost immediately after touching down, Harry heard footsteps running towards him. He whirled around, wand in hand, to find Kingsley Shacklebolt running towards him. Despite wanting to get into the action himself, he reluctantly turned to the Minister._

" _He's alone and has already taken out six of our men. He seems to be a lot more powerful than ever," Kingsley said quickly and gruffly._

" _We need to take greater measures," Harry said as he turned around in time to see another Auror get hit with the green curse. He spoke as quickly as he could. "Order what's left of the_ Daily Prophet _to print leaflets ordering people to place their homes under the Fidelius Charm. We cannot have these attacks continuing, Kingsley. He can't attack us if he can't find us."_

" _I agree, Harry," Kingsley said as another Auror fell, leaving only one. "But not everyone can perform that charm."_

" _Round up everyone that can, and roster them on," Harry said quickly, firing off three spells towards Voldemort silently. "Our numbers are dwindling, so it won't take as long as we think. Just get it done," Harry said authoritatively, not taking the time to realise that he was ordering the Minister For Magic to do things._

" _Alright," Kingsley said. "I'm on it," Harry started to walk briskly forward as the last Auror fell and Voldemort began to laugh. Harry watched as Voldemort pointed his wand towards the sky._

"Morsmordre _!" he shouted and the Dark Mark flew from his wand. He was about to say something else, but his red eyes flickered to Harry._

" _Hello, Tom," Harry said casually. "Long time no see."_

" _Harry," Voldemort said almost politely. "It has been a while now, hasn't it? I was beginning to think that you didn't have the guts to face me."_

" _You know, Tom," Harry said, "it always amazes me how easy it is for you to delude yourself into thinking something is true when it isn't." Harry looked around at the Atrium. "Tell me, do you remember the last time we were here together?"_

" _The old man isn't here to save you this time, Harry," Voldemort said with a laugh. "He barely saved you that day." Harry took this opportunity to point his wand at Voldemort._

"AVADA KEDAVRA _!" he shouted and watched as the green curse flew from his wand. Voldemort merely stepped out of the way._

" _Well, Harry," Voldemort remarked, "I must say that something has changed since that day. I remember you trying an unforgivable on Bellatrix and failing miserably. Tell me, Harry … what changed? What made you capable of this? What made you able to cast the Killing Curse?"_

" _You killed my sons!" Harry yelled. "You killed James and Albus!" Voldemort laughed._

" _Isn't that beautiful?" Voldemort said sarcastically. "You named your boys after your father and the old man. Two men who were too weak to resist me. Looks like they lived up to their namesakes after all!"_

"AVADA KEDAVRA _!" Harry shouted again and Voldemort dodged. Harry then sent a barrage of offensive spells towards Voldemort, which he either dodged or blocked with ease. After about two minutes, Voldemort finally raised his wand._

"Relegatum _," Voldemort intoned and Harry was hit with an invisible force, sending him into a large pillar behind him before he slumped to the floor, unconscious._

 _All of a sudden, Harry jerked awake and found that he was looking into the eyes of Voldemort. He tried to reach for his wand but found that he was tied up._

" _Don't worry, Harry," Voldemort said, pacing the room and twirling Harry's wand. "I'm not going to kill you. Not tonight. You deserve to suffer. And suffer you will. This is why I am going to leave."_

" _Why would you? You could kill me right now!" Harry yelled. As he did, he realised that they were still in the Ministry Atrium._

" _As I said, Harry," Voldemort replied, dropping Harry's wand onto the stone floor. "I want you to suffer. I want you to lose everything you hold dear. I want you to know that you failed. I want you to know that you cannot defeat me because you have no clue as to where the last Horcrux is. I want you to know the power of Lord Voldemort … the_ true _power of Lord Voldemort … before I kill you. And know this, Harry James Potter … it will happen."_

 _With those words, Voldemort seemed to shimmer away and the ropes binding Harry disappeared. Harry fell forward and hit the stone floor of the Ministry Atrium, his head mere inches from his wand. He sighed deeply and laid on the cold stone floor for a long time._


	10. Marauders and the Map

**_D_** ** _isclaimer:_** _I make no claim to the rights of any characters that are owned by J.K. Rowling or Warner Bros., and make no money from this venture. This work is purely for entertainment purposes._

* * *

—CHAPTER NINE—

 _Marauders and the Map_

"Before we begin our lovely feast, I fear I must implore you to listen to the words of an old man," Dumbledore said, standing to address the students. "I would like you all to join me in welcoming the new Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, Gilderoy Lockhart, who has graciously agreed to take the post this year." There were loud cheers and applause at that announcement. None of which Luna took part in.

She looked over across the table and saw that Harry wasn't clapping either. Hermione seemed to be doing so rather dubiously. Colin, on the other hand, looked excited about it. Luna made a mental note to tell Colin the truth so that he didn't become overly disillusioned about Lockhart.

Dumbledore then talked for a little while about rules and Mr Filch and Quidditch teams before he finally smiled broadly, a very visible twinkle in his blue eyes.

"Let the feast, begin," Dumbledore said happily and food began to pile up in front of them. Luna immediately went for some mashed potato that was situated nearby as well as some roast beef.

"Are you both happy to be in Gryffindor?" Harry asked, looking to Luna and Colin.

"Yes!" Colin said excitedly. "And I love Hogwarts! It's amazing."

"It really is, isn't it?" Harry commented before looking to Luna. "What about you Luna?"

"I'm pleased to be here, Harry," Luna replied, putting down her fork. "The Hat told me that I could have been in any of the Houses."

"Even Slytherin?" Neville, who had introduced himself when Luna was sorted, asked from next to Harry. He sounded a little worried. Luna simply nodded.

"The Hat said I'd be good in any of the Houses as well," Harry said and Neville eyed Harry strangely. "It was actually tossing up between Slytherin and Gryffindor before I told it to place me here."

"You've never told me this," Hermione said and Harry just shrugged. Luna was happy that there was someone else that could have been in Slytherin out of her friends.

"I can't see you as a Slytherin," Neville said.

"Neither can I," Colin commented. Luna saw Harry look over to the Slytherin table and smile lightly. She followed his gaze and saw Draco.

"They aren't all bad," Harry said after swallowing a mouthful of potatoes. "Neville, you know that. Remember Ethan?"

"Ethan?" Colin asked. Luna felt the same question arise in her head, but she knew that it would get asked and said nothing.

"Ethan Revala," Harry explained and Luna saw Colin's eyes widen. "He shared a carriage with us."

"We met his brother," Colin said quickly. "Garion. He was just sorted into Hufflepuff."

"Strange, that," Neville said. "I can't remember any siblings being in those two Houses."

"Speaking of Hufflepuff," Harry suddenly said. "Ginny was a bit of a surprise."

"Not really," Luna said airily. Everyone looked at her with raised eyebrows. "After what happened with Ronald on the train, I would not be surprised if Ginevra rethought about Gryffindor. Besides, she _is_ very loyal."

"What exactly happened with Ron on the train?" Neville asked. Harry opened his mouth, but Luna found herself answering first.

"Ronald thought that it would be a good thing to say that he saw Harry as the Boy Who Lived," Luna said. "And then Harry showed that not one of us thought of him as that."

"Idiot," Neville muttered, causing Harry and Hermione to laugh. "What?"

"You just didn't sound like you then," Harry said with a smile.

"You _are_ normally very timid," Hermione said with a nod.

"Well he is," Neville said fervently. "I'm not even a close friend of yours, Harry, but I know you hate all that stuff. I thought Ron would know better than that."

"I know," Harry said. There was a silence as they all ate for a while before Colin spoke up.

"This place looks really huge. Bigger than I expected," he said, looking around. "I bet I'll get lost a lot."

"Don't worry too much," Harry said with a knowing smile. "I'm going to have a talk with Fred and George about something tonight. If it works, I'll be able to help you get around easier."

"Harry …" Hermione said warningly.

"What?" Harry asked, innocently. "I know what I'm doing. I'm just going to reclaim what rightfully belongs to the son of Prongs." Luna giggled and Hermione looked at her.

"You know what he's talking about, don't you?" she demanded and Luna nodded with a sly smile.

"Yes, I do. And I completely approve," she replied. "Trust me, his head is completely Wrackspurt free."

"Welcome, new Gryffindors!" a voice suddenly said, causing Luna to jump slightly. Standing behind Colin was a ghost.

"Hi, Nick," Harry said happily. "How were your holidays?"

"Dreadful, if I am being completely honest," the ghost said before turning back to the First Years. "You should all be very proud to be sorted into my old House."

"You're a ghost aren't you?" Colin asked excitedly and loudly, causing a few laughs.

"Yes, I am," the ghost said plainly. "My name is Sir Nicholas de Mimsy Porpington."

"Wait," one of the other First Year girls said. "Nearly-Headless Nick."

"I much prefer –" he began but was cut off.

"How are you _nearly_ headless?" Colin asked. Nick glared at him lightly before grabbing his ear and pulling, causing his head to seemingly come off his neck. There was a small piece of skin holding the head on, however, proving that he was indeed not truly headless.

"Cool," Colin breathed as Nick plopped his head back on and glided away.

"That's going to happen every year, isn't it, dear brother?" a voice said as he squeezed himself between Harry and Colin. It was Fred. Luna was sure of it.

"It does seem to," the other one said before squeezing in between Harry and Neville. "Someone _always_ asks him."

"Harrykins!" Fred said. "Word has it that you wanted to talk to us."

"Word does travel fast. I'd like to meet that 'word' guy one day," George said. "Get all of his secrets. So what is it?"

"The son of Prongs requires use of the Marauder's Map," Harry said and the twins' eyes widened almost comically.

"If you know about the map, you will know the passwords," Fred said after a moment of being completely goggle-eyed.

"To open and close it," George clarified.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good. Mischief managed," Harry said immediately and the twins actually looked winded.

"We are in the presence of royalty," Fred breathed.

"The son of Prongs," George said, with the same tone.

"Wait a minute," Fred said suddenly, as both of the twins looked up.

"If you know who Prongs is," George said.

"Who are the rest?" Fred asked

"Wormtail is Peter Pettigrew," Harry snarled. "Moony is Remus Lupin and Padfoot is Sirius Black."

"We see," the twins said together in a sage-like voice.

"You'll have it tonight," George said.

"But we must ask if we can use it on occasion," Fred said. "We still haven't completely memorised it yet."

"No problem," Harry said with a smile. "Now it might be best if you get moving. Neville looks a bit squashed."

"The Marauder's Map?" Hermione asked as the twins walked away.

"Sirius told me about it a while ago," Harry said. "It's a map of the school that Dad, Sirius, Remus and Pettigrew made. I'll show you later."

"How did you know that they had it?" Colin asked. _Bugger_ , Luna thought as she looked at Harry. It was clear that he hadn't thought of that.

"It's rather clear isn't it?" Luna asked, causing four sets of eyes to go to her. "The twins are notorious for getting in trouble. Sirius told Harry that Filch had it. So either the twins had the Map or they would be able to get a hold of it."

"Exactly," Harry said with a grateful smile directed at Luna which made her feel happy. "And now that I'll have it, I'll just let you two use it to help you get around the school," Harry said happily.

"Thank you Harry," Luna said gratefully.

"Yeah! This'll help loads!" Colin said happily.

* * *

 _ **August 31st, 2017**_

" _Are you sure about this James?" Albus nervously asked his older brother who scoffed and stopped pacing._

" _Of course," James said, truly believing what he was saying. "I wouldn't have planned this out this way if I wasn't sure, Al."_

 _James and Albus were sitting in James' room alone, waiting for a sound. Just one sound. This was two months of planning and James wasn't ready for this to fail. They only had one chance and he wanted this to work more than anything in the whole world. James stopped to stare at a poster of the Falmouth Falcons on the wall next to his bed._

" _But what if we get caught?" Albus asked and James looked sharply at him._

" _We won't," James said quickly and more sharply than he had intended. "And if we do, there isn't much that Mum and Dad can do. We leave for Hogwarts tomorrow, after all."_

" _They could stop us going," Albus said in the same worried tone. James stared at him for a minute before breaking out in laughter. Albus did not look amused._

" _They wouldn't stop us from going," James said. "You know how Dad feels about Hogwarts and how he always said it's like home to him." His father had indeed said that a lot, though he usually said 'used to be like home' and not 'it is like home' though James saw no reason to add that in there. Albus seemed to pick up on that._

 _While James would probably never admit it, he was quite proud of his younger brother and how smart he was. He, in some ways, admired it. But he always felt that he wasn't destined to be that type of person, so he tried to be funny. Funny, he was good at._

 _Albus opened his mouth again but closed it when they heard footsteps coming from down the hall. James waited for a few seconds and he felt joyous when he realised that he hadn't heard a door close._

" _You ready?" James asked Albus excitedly. Albus reluctantly nodded as James opened his door, checked to see whether anyone was around and, seeing no one, exited his room with his younger brother in tow._

 _The brothers moved quickly down the hallway and found the door to their father's study open. It was a triumph, really, because it was normally kept locked with magic. James pushed the door open and it squeaked slightly but he ignored it and pressed on._

 _The room had a surprising amount of books on shelves and a lot of paperwork strewn over a desk that was, clearly, where their father worked. James looked back to his brother and put a finger to his own lips to show his brother that he was not to say anything. Albus nodded as James swiftly moved behind the desk and began opening drawers._

 _James rifled through the drawers of his father's desk for a few minutes before he came upon an old piece of parchment with nothing written on it. James reverently picked it up and looked at it. He only came back to reality when Albus hissed, signifying that he had heard a sound._

 _James quickly closed a drawer and moved out of the room. The minute that they entered James' room, James heard footsteps ascend the stairs near their father's office. The footsteps entered the office and the door closed. James let out a breath and, once again, looked at the parchment._

" _Are you sure that's it?" Albus asked, looking at the parchment in James' hand. James nodded._

" _This is what Dad described, isn't it?" James asked, handing the parchment to Albus who took it gingerly._

" _It is," Albus said happily. "When can we try it out?"_

" _I wouldn't want to risk it now," James said thoughtfully. "We'll try it as soon as we get to Hogwarts. Okay?"_

" _Yeah," Albus said with a broad smile which James returned. James was already excited to be going back to Hogwarts, but he thought that the addition of the Marauder's Map would make it even better._

* * *

Luna was very nervous once the feast was over, and began to pick at her fingernails as the First Years were led to the Gryffindor Common Room. Harry and Hermione had already left to go there, and there were two Fifth Year prefects that Luna didn't know leading them to where they were going to have to spend their lives at Hogwarts.

"You alright, Luna?" Colin asked, looking at her hands. Luna looked at him and smiled ruefully.

"Oh, I'm okay," Luna said. "I'm just a little anxious about having to sleep in a bed that isn't my own, you see."

"I feel the same way," Colin admitted. "I didn't really get a chance to go to any sleepovers, because I never really had any close friends. I'm used to my bed and I think it'll be hard to get used to another one." Luna smiled at the boy brightly. She didn't think that there would be anyone else that would have the same problem as her.

"How about we both make a promise, then?" Luna asked as the group of First Years and the Fifth Year prefects ascended a flight of stairs.

"What's that?" Colin asked, a little nervously.

"That we'll both get to sleep tonight," Luna replied, smiling. "Maybe it'll help."

"Alright," Colin said with a nod. "I promise."

"I promise as well, then," Luna said happily, just as they reached the portrait of a rather large lady, in all pink. She looked up and saw the group of First Years and a strange smirk came onto her face.

"Password?" she asked formally as she eyed the First Years.

"Sword Stroke," the girl prefect said and the portrait nodded before swinging open, revealing a circular hole that the Prefects walked into, the First Years following. Luna and Colin, being the smallest of the First Years, were helped up by two boys that Luna failed to recognise because of a combination of anxiety and tiredness.

"You should remember that password," the boy prefect said. "It'll change at least once a month. But don't worry, someone will tell you. This is the Gryffindor Common Room. All Gryffindor students will spend a lot of their time here, and we hope that you feel at home." After that he went into a huge speech about curfew times.

"Alright," the girl prefect said with a broad, nice smile. "The girls' dorms are up the stairs and to the left and the boys' dorms are upstairs and to the right. Boys, don't try to go into the girls dorms. You won't like what happens." She smiled evilly at the male prefect who turned slightly red while some of the First Year boys looked a little disgusted at the thought of going into the girls' dorm. Colin was not one of them, Luna noticed. The girl prefect laughed before continuing. "You'll see a plaque above a door that says 'First Year'. That's where you go. Your things are already there."

After that, the Prefects waved off the First Years, most of whom immediately raced up the stairs to see their dorms. Luna looked at Colin with a questioning look as she had expected him to do the same. He simply shrugged before turning to look around the room.

Luna was quite pleased with the look of the room and felt that it was quite homey. She had heard stories from her father about what the Ravenclaw Common Room was like, and she was sure that this one was better. She looked back around to see that Colin had spotted Harry and Hermione standing together watching the proceedings.

Luna didn't bother to go to them straight away as it looked like they were having a nice conversation. Luna was happy to simply stand and watch them. After about a minute, Harry looked over at her and smiled a broad, warm smile that Luna couldn't help but smile back to. Harry said something to Hermione and Colin who both nodded as Harry walked away before continuing what they were talking about.

"Everything okay, Luna?" Harry asked. Luna shrugged.

"Yes," she said truthfully. "I just thought that Colin might like some time to talk to you two alone. I was content to watch." Harry looked at her with a questioning look before smiling.

"That was nice of you," he said. "I did actually want to ask you something."

"What's that?" Luna asked, genuinely interested.

"How do you think you'll sleep tonight?" Harry asked. Luna raised her eyebrows. "On the day that you asked if I could stay at your house, I remember you telling Mrs Weasley that you don't usually sleep well when you aren't in your own bed."

"Oh, I think I'll be fine," Luna said, looking over to Colin who was gaping at Hermione who was chuckling. "I did promise after all."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked.

"I don't think that I should say," Luna replied with a smile.

"That's fine," Harry said. "I think you'll be fine. The beds are really very comfy. Anyway, we should go and talk to Hermione and Colin." Luna nodded, but yawned, finally feeling that she was truly very tired. Harry laughed.

"I don't think that it will be a very long talk," Luna commented with a small smile. They walked over to the other two who looked up.

"Are you going to actually show me now?" Hermione asked irritably as she looked at Harry who smirked, pulling out a piece of parchment from his pocket along with his wand. Luna and Colin looked at each other but said nothing.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," Harry said, tapping his wand once on the parchment. All of a sudden, the parchment began to fill with ink blots that slowly formed something comprehensible.

 _Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs_  
 _Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers_  
 _are proud to present_  
 _THE MARAUDER'S MAP_

Luna smiled as she read it while Colin breathed in sharply in excitement. Harry just chuckled.

"Fred and George gave it to me not long before you two came in, so this is my first time using it," he said as he unfolded the parchment to reveal what was very clearly a large map of the entire school.

"And those names are where those people actually are?" Hermione asked, pointing to the name 'Albus Dumbledore'. Harry nodded. "So this is basically spying?" she then accused.

"Only if it's used for that," Luna said.

"Exactly," Harry said. "Colin and Luna will use it to get around the school, not spy on Dumbledore."

"This is so cool," Colin said wonderously.

"There was something that Sirius told me to try if I could get my hands on it," Harry said, pointing his wand at the map. "Mischief managed," he said and the ink disappeared immediately. He then passed the parchment to Colin. "Put your wand to it and say 'reveal your secrets'." Colin nodded quickly and pulled out his wand. He tapped it to the parchment.

"Reveal your secrets," he said and the ink appeared again.

 _Mr Moony presents his compliments to Colin Creevey, and hopes that he realises the enormity of what the spawn of Prongs is allowing him to do._

 _Mr Prongs agrees with Mr Moony, and would like to add that Colin Creevey must be important to have such a large honour bestowed upon him._

 _Mr Padfoot would like to register his astonishment that he never had the chance to meet Colin Creevey, as anyone who could befriend the spawn of Prongs must be amazing._

 _Mr Wormtail bids Colin Creevey good day, and advises him to solemnly swear that he is up to no good before having his mischief managed._

"Wow," Colin said as the ink faded.

"That's what Sirius said would happen if one of my friends used it," Harry said. "If it were anyone that wasn't my friend, they would be insulted."

"Can I try it out?" Colin asked, nearly bouncing in his chair. Harry nodded and Colin immediately tried it out. They proceeded to talk for another fifteen minutes before both Luna and Colin yawned nearly as one. It was then that the four of them decided to actually get some sleep.

Luna bid goodnight to her friends before heading upstairs to her dormitory. She opened the door to find that the other three girls were already in bed and either asleep or very nearly there. Luna found her bed, got her pyjamas and changed. She then proceeded to actually test the bed out.

 _Harry was right_ , Luna thought, laying her head on a pillow and putting a sheet over her body. _These beds_ are _comfy_. But despite that thought, Luna still found it very difficult to actually get to sleep. It had to have taken her more than an hour, but she did eventually fall asleep and dreamed some lovely dreams.

Luna, being used to waking early, was the first of the girls in her dorm to actually wake up. She looked at their sleeping forms before mentally shrugging and leaving them to their fates if they didn't get up on time. Luna quickly got ready for the day and headed down to the Common Room where she found Colin sitting in an armchair.

"Good morning, Colin," Luna said brightly as she sat down near him.

"Morning," he said back to her, just as brightly, if not more so. "So, how'd you sleep?"

"I feel very refreshed," Luna replied. "It did take me a while to actually fall asleep, though."

"Same here," Colin said. "I love the beds though. I think I would have gotten to sleep quicker if the other boys weren't up later than me. They were loud too. I just tried to ignore them. It was hard though."

"I can imagine," Luna said with a smile. "The other girls in my dorm were asleep when I got up there."

They talked for a while longer, waiting for Harry or Hermione to get up. They could have tried to make it to the Great Hall, but thought it was polite to wait. Besides, it was fairly early and people were only just beginning to actually wake up. When Harry and Hermione woke up, the four of them went down to breakfast. Harry gave Luna and Colin the map before they set off for their first lesson of the day which was, unfortunately, Defence Against the Dark Arts with Lockhart.

Luna was pleased to have the Map as it made actually getting to the class a lot easier. In fact, Luna and Colin were the first two there. Lockhart, the bumbling fool that he was, was over ten minutes late to the class. Luna looked at Colin at that point and saw that he still seemed excited. Luna had to stifle a groan that very nearly escaped her mouth.

The idiot of a man then decided to test the class on what was found in his lie-filled books. And the majority of the questions weren't really about his so-called achievements but more about himself. Luna answered each and every question deliberately wrong and insulting.

 _What is Gilderoy Lockhart's favourite colour?_ Greenish-brown.

 _What is Gilderoy Lockhart's secret ambition?_ To be the world's most well known fraud.

 _What, in your opinion, is Gilderoy Lockhart's greatest achievement to date?_ Fooling as many people as he has.

And it went on until question number 52.

 _52\. When is Gilderoy Lockhart's birthday, and what would his ideal gift be?_ How should I know? And probably a sack of ill-earned gold and maybe a brand new book to bring him a brand new sack of ill-earned gold.

Luna actually laughed out loud when she saw the red colour that Lockhart's face turned upon seeing her answer sheet. Upon hearing this, Lockhart looked up and smiled dazzlingly at her which just made her laugh even more. Either he was trying to charm her or he thought she was just joking. The girls in the class all glared at her with an amazing level of hatred while the boys mostly just looked at her strangely, Colin included.

It was during her last class of the day, Transfiguration, that Luna received a note from an older student.

 _Miss Lovegood,_

 _I require your presence immediately after the end of your lesson with Professor McGonagall. Padfoot and Moony need to learn new tricks. I absolutely adore sherbet lemons by the way._

 _Professor Dumbledore_

Luna put the note away in her pocket before turning back to help Colin transfigure a matchstick into a needle, having already done so herself. Luna was very happy that Sirius and Remus would find out the truth, but she also wished that she could tell Hermione and Colin. While she knew that she had to keep it from them, it still felt wrong to do so.

* * *

 _ **August 31st, 2017**_

 _Harry was working in his home office the night before his sons were due to go to Hogwarts. The reason he was working so hard was because he wanted to be able to take the morning off in order to see James and Albus off from Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. He didn't want to have to say that he couldn't because of work commitments. He already felt that he spent too much time working._

 _He was very much dreading the day that his beautiful Lily had to go to Hogwarts. He loved all of his children, and he wanted them to have the Hogwarts experience that he did, without all of the danger of course, but not being able to see them as often as he would like hurt him beyond measure. He, not for the first time, wished that Hogwarts wasn't a boarding school._

 _Harry looked up from his desk and smiled before standing and walking out of the room and down the stairs. When he came down the stairs, he saw Lily playing with her friend Carol, who lived next door, and smiled._

" _Are you two having fun?" he asked and they both smiled at him._

" _We are, Daddy," Lily said with a dazzling smile. "Thank you for letting Carol come over."_

" _It's my pleasure, Lil," Harry said before making his way to the kitchen where Ginny was preparing dinner._

" _You finished?" she asked before giving him a kiss._

" _No, unfortunately not," Harry replied while pouring himself a glass of water. "I just thought it was time." He felt a slight tingle go through his body._

" _You're actually letting them take it?" Ginny asked with a slight smirk._

" _If I just gave it to them, I think it would mean less," Harry said, smirking back at her. "I'd better go back up there and get back to work. I love you."_

" _I love you, too," Ginny replied as he kissed her again._

 _Harry then made his way upstairs and into his office, noticing that the door was open wider than he had left it. He chuckled lightly as he closed the door behind him. He sat in the chair behind his desk and immediately reached for the drawer that had held the Map. Seeing that the Map was gone, Harry smiled and closed the drawer, getting back to his work._

* * *

Harry sat down in one of the chairs offered to him by Dumbledore. He looked over and saw Luna do the same. Harry's first classes were actually quite annoying because they were going over things that they had done in First Year that Harry had inconveniently forgotten over the holidays.

"How was your day?" Dumbledore asked kindly to both of them.

"Oh, it was alright," Luna said. "I could have done without Lockhart's ego-quiz, but that cannot be helped."

"I can imagine," Dumbledore said with an almost visible cringe. "I had to agree to him using that quiz."

"So it'll be bad?" Harry asked. He shook his head when Dumbledore and Luna both nodded.

"You can make it fun, though," Luna commented airily.

"How?" Harry asked. He noticed that the Headmaster was even interested.

"Answer all of the questions deliberately wrong and, if possible, insultingly," Luna said causing Harry to laugh. "I think he thought I was joking."

They weren't able to say anything else as the fireplace in the office flared up with green flames and Remus walked out. Almost immediately after him, Sirius stumbled out.

"Bloody Floo takes time to work out," Sirius mumbled, making everyone laugh. Sirius looked up and was surprised to see Harry. "What are you doing here?"

"Great to see you too, Sirius," Harry said as he stood up and gave his godfather a hug.

"Hello, Luna," Sirius said and Luna nodded.

"Hello, Sirius. Remus," Luna said, nodding towards Remus.

"How are you Luna?" Remus asked politely.

"I'm just fine, although I do despise Professor Lockhart," Luna replied. "Talk about a Wrackspurt infestation." Remus looked at her for a moment with an odd look on his face.

"Indeed," he replied before looking to Dumbledore who was watching with a slightly amused look on his face. "What is this about and why do I get the feeling that I won't much like it?" Dumbledore smiled slightly and conjured two more chairs next to Harry.

"I think you should both sit," Dumbledore said, motioning to the chairs. Harry sat between Luna and Sirius while Remus sat next to Sirius. "We are here because of something that Harry and Luna have found out over the holidays."

"What did they find out?" Sirius asked, sounding intrigued. Harry suddenly felt slightly anxious about telling Sirius and Remus everything. It was a very big thing to have to do. He could only hope that they accepted it.

"Before we tell you, you must promise me that you will not reveal this to anyone. At all. This is of the utmost importance," Dumbledore said in a grave voice. Harry saw Sirius and Remus' eyes widen.

"Of course we won't," Sirius said.

"Absolutely not," Remus replied seriously, sitting forward. "But I do have to wonder what could warrant this. What's going on, Albus?" Dumbledore sighed and leaned forward in his chair, his fingers interlaced together.

"Have either of you heard of the potion known as 'In Remembrance'?" he asked. Harry heard a sharp intake of breath come from Sirius' direction and looked immediately at the man who looked surprised.

"You have to be joking!" he exclaimed. Dumbledore shook his head. "Really? Who?"

"Wait," Remus said quickly. "What's this about? What's 'In Remembrance'?" Harry looked over to see Sirius look to his best friend.

"It's a potion that one of my ancestors created," Sirius replied and Harry's eyes widened at that knowledge. "What it does is send back an hour's worth of memories to a certain time in a person's life. It's a very dark potion. There has been only one other documented use which was the very same ancestor that created the potion." Remus looked to Dumbledore, apparently to try and receive confirmation.

"Sirius is correct," Dumbledore said gravely. "Everything he has said is true."

"And who did it?" Remus asked. Dumbledore's eyes went towards Harry and Luna.

"What?" Sirius and Remus shouted together, shifting forwards to the edge of their seats.

"Harry or Luna?" Sirius asked, looking between the two of them.

"Both," Luna replied. Sirius slumped back into his chair while Remus looked on, shocked. Harry was beginning to wonder if telling them was the right idea.

"Why?" Sirius asked as he raised his hands to his face. "What could make you do that? It requires a sacrifice AND for you both to die." Remus paled.

"A sacrifice? A _human_ sacrifice?" Remus asked shakily, looking at Dumbledore who nodded. "There must be a good reason otherwise you wouldn't have listened to them."

"There is," Dumbledore replied gravely.

"Voldemort gained power," Harry said.

"Voldemort's dead," Sirius said quickly.

"Not dead," Harry said with a shake of his head. "He had Horcruxes. _Has_ Horcruxes." Sirius and Remus gasped.

"More than one?" they both immediately asked.

"Ah, good," Dumbledore said. "You already know what they are. That does save some time."

"Yes," Harry said. "We thought there were seven, but it turns out there were eight."

"Eight," Sirius breathed. "Eight. Eight Horcruxes."

"Do you know what they are?" Remus asked. "Where they are?"

"All but one," Luna said. "Lucius Malfoy had a diary, which we have already managed to get. There is a ring in the Gaunt Shack. Slytherin's Locket at Grimmauld Place. Hufflepuff's Cup in Bellatrix Lestrange's vault at Gringott's. Ravenclaw's Lost Diadem in the Room of Requirement here at Hogwarts. Nagini, Voldemort's snake, though that isn't a Horcrux until my Third Year. We don't know where or what the last one is."

"Grimmauld Place?" Sirius asked. "My old house? What? Did Voldemort give one to Regulus?"

"Not exactly," Harry said.

"Hold on. That's only seven," Remus pointed out. "What's number eight?"

"Me," Harry said sombrely. Sirius' eyes flew open and went to Harry's scar.

"You?" he asked in a strangled tone. "How?"

"We can only really guess," Dumbledore said. "It is my belief that a piece of Voldemort's soul attached itself to Harry at the moment the scar on Harry's head opened. I also believe that it was Lily's sacrifice which made the Killing Curse rebound on Voldemort which, in turn, tore apart Voldemort's soul, which was how it attached itself to Harry. It likely entered through the open wound on his forehead."

"Merlin," Sirius breathed, grabbing hold of his godson and pulling him into a hug. "But I need to know. Did you get the Horcrux out? In that timeline, I mean."

"Yes," Harry said sadly, remembering the memories.

"How?" Remus asked. It was a question that Harry really didn't want to answer.

"Voldemort killed me," Harry said quietly.

"But he came back," Luna said quickly. "He was given the choice to come back or move on. He chose to come back and he defeated Voldemort, only not really."

"I think, from here, Remus, Sirius and I will view the memories and that will answer any remaining questions," the four nodded and Dumbledore turned to Harry and Luna. "I will require both of your memories, and then you may go. Although, we do need to discuss something first."

"What's that, Professor Dumbledore?" Luna asked.

"I would like you to inform Miss Granger, Mr Longbottom and Mr Creevey that they will have Occlumency lessons with me every Friday when they have no lessons of an afternoon. Starting at four o'clock," Dumbledore replied.

"But what do we tell them about why?" Harry asked.

"Just tell them that there is something that you need to tell them, but you need to be sure that the information won't get out," Dumbledore suggested.

"Are you sure you should be giving students this information, Albus?" Remus asked, sounding worried.

"We trust them," Harry said firmly. "And we will not keep them out of the loop."

"I agree with them, Remus. Their memories say who we should trust, and those were three of the names mentioned. As were both of your names," Dumbledore said. Remus nodded and Dumbledore turned to Harry with his wand in his hand. "I do need your memories now."

After Harry and Luna gave Dumbledore their memories, Harry hugged Sirius and left the Headmaster's Office just as Dumbledore, Sirius and Remus entered the Pensieve.

"When do you think we should tell them?" Harry asked, looking over to Luna who had, subconsciously, grabbed his hand.

"I think we should tell them right away," Luna said and Harry was feeling slightly apprehensive.

"But what if they feel like we're hiding something from them?" Harry asked and Luna shrugged.

"We are," she said simply. "But I think that they will understand. They aren't Ronald. I actually think it will make Colin feel a bit better."

"How so?" Harry asked, looking at the blonde girl who was smiling.

"Having the promise of something so big that it needs protection from others actually revealed to him will make Colin sure that we actually like him," Luna said. Harry was a little hurt.

"Colin doesn't think we like him?" he asked.

"Perhaps you should ask him about all of his Muggle friends," Luna said cryptically.

"I think I will," Harry said.

They soon reached the Gryffindor Common Room where they found Hermione and Colin sitting together. Harry and Luna walked quickly over to them and sat down.

"Where have you two been?" Hermione asked, looking more at Harry than Luna.

"Dumbledore wanted to see us," Harry said.

"Why?" Colin asked.

"We … can't exactly tell you," Harry said.

"That's one of the reasons Dumbledore needed to talk to us," Luna clarified.

"Harry …" Hermione said in a warning tone.

"No, Hermione," Harry said. "There's nothing bad going on. It's just that we can't tell you what it is without … the proper precautions."

"What do you mean precautions?" Hermione asked, obviously intrigued. Harry inwardly smiled, knowing that this was pure Hermione. She couldn't help but be concerned, but when it came down to it, she was always curious as well.

"Have you heard of Occlumency?" Harry asked. Colin shook his head while Hermione quickly nodded hers.

"It's the art of blocking your mind from intruders," Hermione recited. "Why would you know that?"

"In order to tell you what we want to, you'll need to learn Occlumency," Harry said.

"Both of you," Luna clarified. Hermione looked a little put out while Colin looked excited.

"It must be pretty big to have to learn Occlumency just to be told," Hermione said thoughtfully. "Is it bad?"

"Yes and no," Harry replied. "Depends on how you look at it."

"When do we start?" Colin asked in an excited tone. Hermione sighed in resignation.

"Every Friday afternoon at four," Harry said. "Dumbledore's Office. I'll show you where that is later."


End file.
